20s AU Post

[cryptsleeper]

"Land of the Dead" (Watch on YouTube)

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.

Comments

[miraclewhip]

[ Wow rude. Things to do in bed was entirely what he was implying, but it's USUALLY good strategy. ]

Mm.

[ And he leans forward as much as he can without squashing Sypha too much between them. ]

[cryptsleeper]

I'm trying not to get used to it.

[The fussing is fine. Just hearing them talk is nice. It gives their vampire a moment not to just luxuriate in having them both, but to also wiggle am arm free from the blanket and to have it rest softly on Sypha's leg.

He's so keenly aware of where Sypha's hand is resting, what it means. His heartrate is steady and normal and so very human. Nothing about human needs to be repressed right now.]

I've barely noticed it, or any other pain, so I can't give an actual answer. [Alucard knows who that's from, and that's not something he's going to poke at in a moment.] Give me another hour, I suppose, and we'll have a real answer.

[willpowerful]

You don't need to light it on my account. You don't...have to go to such lengths, just for me.

[Her attention is immediately drawn to the stuffed animals, though, just because their presence is somehow so incongruous with the rest of the room — the furnishings stylish and fashionable, yet littered with things that speak of youth and innocence. If she were a little braver, she'd go over and pick the wolf up, give it a soft squeeze to her chest.

She's not, so she stays where she is, and nudges Alucard lightly toward the bed.]

Go lie back down. You really should not be up; I'll help you get settled in again.

[cryptsleeper]

[VAMPIRE'S THOUGHTS ARE NOT HORNY ONES sorry.

But at least the lean is met with the vampire's lips on Trevor's, careful to not squish Sypha in the process. It means no lingering or anything of the sort, but it's there. It's important.]

Ours.

[cryptsleeper]

Sypha, you just said you couldn't sleep.

[It's important, as far as the vampire's concerned. She's staying here, she needs to be as comfortable as possible.

For once, he doesn't let himself be nudged back to resting. He stays there, eyes resting on Sypha worriedly.]

Fussing isn't a one-way street.

[willpowerful]

It's not the lack of a fire that's keeping me from sleeping.

[Which sounds ungrateful, a little, but. Now, finally, she does go over to the couch and sit down on it, only hesitating a moment before pulling her heels up onto the edge of the cushion and hugging her knees for the sake of having something to hug.]

I think...I miss my family, perhaps.

[cryptsleeper]

[Alucard closes the door behind them both, then follows Sypha to the sofa. He doesn't like the sound of her voice being distressed, and when she reveals the reason, Alucard aches. When he sits, it's right beside her (carefully moving the wolf onto the arm of the sofa.)

He's still not at a good angle for this, but it is easier now to wrap both of his arms around Sypha and pull her closer, making sure that her head rests on his good shoulder.]

That's understandable. Besides this house is...hardly welcoming to most.

[miraclewhip]

[ Trevor, for his part, is content to just force the matter. He lifts Alucard again, setting about getting ready to carry him outside. It's only when he starts to turn to demand Sypha stay close behind him that Dracula reveals himself at his side, simply lifting his son out of Trevor's arms as if the weight were nothing. Trevor scrambles to put himself between Sypha and Dracula. ]

I am a doctor, Speaker. Of any subject that you could name. I possess the wisdom of a thousand years, and you dare to suggest that I trust the son of Lisa Tepes with anything less?

[miraclewhip]

Get as used as you like. Hardly like I'll have anything else to do for a while to keep me in shape.

[ The chances of vampire bullshit any time soon are low. And- The ribbon is still on Alucard's finger when he frees his arm. ]

Oh, shit, right. Here.

[ He takes his hand away from Sypha's knee for just a moment, digging around in his pocket for two more lengths of the stuff and dropping one on top of Alucard's hand. ]

You have to tie hers, and then she ties mine. Then we've done one each.

[miraclewhip]

[ It's only a brief kiss, but they've been rare lately. It's still perfect. ]

Yours.

[ And one day, these sorts of exchanges will become evidence, proof that he isn't his own or his family's to trade away. For now, they're just soft and perfect and two words that always mean safety.

He kisses Sypha's temple before he leans back down, pulling her so close that anyone could be forgiven for thinking that it was cold for once and he needed her warmth. ]

[willpowerful]

And how did the wisdom of a thousand years serve him when you clawed him open?

[She should know better than to provoke Dracula when Trevor's moved to put himself between them. She should know better than to start conflict when someone else will take the first hit from it.

And yet the sight of Alucard draped in his father's arms makes her see red in a way that feels like fire blazing inside her, because he doesn't belong there, doesn't belong to him, not anymore.]

You abandoned him. You have no right to speak of who or what he should be entrusted to!

[miraclewhip]

Sypha.

[ This is a bad idea. This is a bad time, place, and general situation to be having an argument like this. Trevor's tempted to just accept Dracula's terms. But Sypha needs food and water. More to the point, she's already very much not accepted Dracula's terms. And so-

-shit, her aim isn't going to be steady, is it? He crouches, bringing his shoulders down to a good height. ]

Brace your arm on my shoulder. Aim for the body. Don't hit Adrian.

[willpowerful]

...Have I missed something, then, about the ribbons?

[She plucks one up, twirling it around between her fingers as she eyes each of them in turn — first Trevor, then Alucard.]

You've been scheming, while I've been in here enjoying my show.

[cryptsleeper]

Oh, this is an older scheme.

[The vampire needs a moment to wiggle his other arm free. He was Burrioted Too Hard.

But now he's just a weird blanket mermaid. There's the remaining ribbon, and Alucard's dexterity is in fine working order.]

But it was his scheme, so I'll let Trevor explain.

[willpowerful]

There's nothing wrong with it.

[On this, she will insist. She's not ungrateful, not turning up her nose at the kindness of having a house to stay in at all.

But there's something about the move to the castle that really sinks home that the Speakers are gone. Maybe it's because at the townhouse it was easy to pretend that the camp was still there, just waiting for her, and she was the one choosing not to go back to it yet. But this? This is lonesome, and different, and there are no Speakers, because there's no one. There's only her, and her Alucard.]

But...could I stay here, tonight, even so?

[cryptsleeper]

[It's Dracula's demon castle, yes, there are many problems with it.]

Of course.

[He'll take the sofa. It isn't the first or the last time he's slept on it, and it's strange being in his own bed with everything that has changed. He doesn't like it, and Sypha's concerns are a welcome way to ignore his own.]

I should have simply offered you that option to begin with.

[miraclewhip]

[ He is too powerful at blankets. Fear him. ]

I'll make a bigger scene about it later, when there are actually rings involved. Already made a fool of myself for his sake, you deserve the same.

[ But he takes one of Sypha's hands, kissing over the ring finger before he passes it over to Alucard. ]

[willpowerful]

[So this is a thing we're really doing, then, aren't we. What a story we're going to have to tell Adrian, when all this is over.

But she reaches into her robes, and from them comes the heavy, severe weight of Trevor's gun, and don't hit Adrian is a mantra as she steadies her arm and her aim on Trevor's shoulder and brings her finger to the trigger.]

Give him back to us.

[IS THIS A DEESCALATION OF HOSTILITIES OR]

If you truly want him to be safe then give him back, to the people he trusts with his life.

[willpowerful]

...Oh.

[Oh, well. That certainly sheds a lot of light on things, doesn't it, and there's even a little flush in her cheeks as her hand is moved to where Alucard has the ribbon and they're each going to tie it on, one by one, and —

Oh. That's really rather nice, isn't it? It feels like a promise. A promise of it's safe to do this now, it's over.]

So. Rings later, but for the time being, ribbons?

[cryptsleeper]

That's the timeline as it has been explained to me. [There's a pause, and a sudden joy in Alucard's tone.] I'm not in charge.

[He will be absolutely in charge of wedding planning, but that's different. This is Trevor's domain, and he's so, so happy to go with it.

His hand takes Sypha's, and there is a soft kiss that is not unlike Trevor's. Then Alucard is careful as he ties the ribbon there, ensuring that it isn't too tight.]

[miraclewhip]

I gave him to you and you brought him into danger. You sundered the armour that I gave to him, and you think yourselves worthy of his life? No.

[ Dracula is approaching now, step by agonisingly slow step. Trevor can't move back, not without throwing off Sypha's aim, but he tenses. ]

Sypha, now.

[ But before Sypha can shoot, Dracula's put Alucard down, apparently on thin air (guess who does have a 'carry the vampire' spell). He coils a hand instead into Trevor's hair, lifting him from the ground by it. ]

Explain, Speaker, why I ought to suffer the two of you to live.

[miraclewhip]

Later, yeah. Can't promise when, but- I'll find work, once I'm not needed for carrying vampires around.

[ It might be a while.

There's one ribbon left. He runs a thumb over the one tied around Sypha's finger, making a soft noise of approval, and then places the last one in her hand and holds out his own. ]

Your turn.

[willpowerful]

I'll teach you how to tell fortunes by the roadside. It's good enough work, though I doubt anyone will believe you.

[ALSO NOT A METAPHOR. But that's okay, because she's taking her time looking at the length of ribbon wrapped around her finger, and who's put it there, and what it means, and how the circuit flows amongst them.

Maybe it wasn't intentional; maybe it only worked out that way. But there's something significant, perhaps, about Trevor choosing Alucard, and Alucard tethering Sypha, and Sypha keeping Trevor. That's a detail she'd weave into a story, later, like an ornament; not vital to the structure, any, but still good to be there nevertheless.]

This is how I do it, yes?

[She picks up his hand, and kisses the ring finger, and then nimbly wraps the length of ribbon and carefully ties it on.]

[cryptsleeper]

I think the problem isn't believing, it's dressing up unkind truths in a way that's palatble. Speaking from experience, he's bad at that.

[BELMONT COMING OUT OF A WELL TO SHAME VAMPIRES and all that.

He'll make some of his own suggestions later. For now, the vampire simply watches as the little circle of theirs is completed, smiling at it like a big, dumb idiot.

(His father's going to be furious. Which is great.]

Looks right to me. [He pauses, then his smile becomes a little more regretful.] Should've been done a while ago.

[miraclewhip]

I can be nice! [ Wow rude. ] I was just going to do something normal. Maybe ask Father Robert to put in a good word for me next time someone mentions needing garden work or repairs done.

[ Never mind that priests aren't a normal thing for 2/3 of this group. Never mind that there probably is no normal here. Because now everyone has a ribbon, and that's perfect. ]

Couldn't have been. Imagine the fuss that people would have made about you going around with a ribbon on you. [ They'd have needed proper rings, which means that Alucard would have had to take the lead because the other two don't have any fucking money. And by all appearances, that's not what he needed. He needed one of them to be the one to lay claim to him, not the other way around. And Trevor knows Alucard, and he knows himself, and Alucard would have chosen something that he would have balked at the extravagance of. And Sypha would just be stuck in the middle of all of this. ] It doesn't have to be tied up in that bullshit now.