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.

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[Alucard breathes a sigh of relief only after Trevor is in bed. It isn't earned. They don't know how bad this is going to be. But for the immediate right now, tonight, he can enjoy the tiniest bit of relief. The small bit of knowledge that Trevor's alive, and right now, alive counts for far too much.

When Trevor awakes, Alucard is very much resting his eyes, the hope of a quick depression nap dashed due to the precious night's adventures. This is the next best thing, and now it is come to an end. He feels only a little more whole, but Alucard's come to accept that that is how all of this works. Every damn increment.

He sits up slowly as Trevor swears, his hand coming to rest on Trevor's shoulder. Trevor's still in work clothes, and that'll be the first problem of many to deal with, that much Alucard knows.]

I'm here. What do you need?

[There's already water on the bedside table.]

[ Everything hurts. Oh, there's the stabbing pain in one thigh, but that's secondary to the agony of complete, complete exhaustion in every part of him. Even lying still is too much work for his body to bear, and it's all he can to to coil in upon himself, make himself as small as possible so there's less of him to hurt.

He gives a wordless, too-high sound of acknowledgement in response to Alucard's question. What he needs is something that neither of them will ever give. He needs to be a thing instead of a person. To not matter. To not have a choice in this. To be able to see all of this as normal and right,until the aching in his bones is the way things are and not something new and worrying. He has borne all of this before for far longer, and that was what made it easier. ]

Overslept. Fucked everything up. Need to work. [ He mumbles it in that same soft, too-small voice, but makes no visible efforts to uncurl himself to actually get out of bed. ]

No, you don't.

[On that much, the vampire is firm. Most days, he can ignore the pain of recovery when he has to be on for one reason or the other. Reminding the other two of things to take care of, or having to act as regent. Other times, it's simply to mask the real extent of the agony.

Right now, it's because the Belmont is just being an absolute idiot.]

You're on bedrest today.

Can't.

[ Can't rest. He has to regain momentum. If he's working, it'll hurt less. That's how it works. That's how this has always worked. ]

Fucked up. Have to figure out the damage. Have to fix it. Have to-

[ He does try to uncurl this time and then quickly coils back tighter when his muscles immediately rebel against that movement, cursing under his breath. ]

[All that prompts from Alucard is a heavy sigh, the sound of all of the air being forced out of his lungs. The hand that has been resting on Trevor's shoulder moves, settling in his hair instead.]

Take a few hours off then, at the very least. Center yourself. Because this takes adjusting to.

[And he should know. He's a goddamn authority on bearing these injuries and working through them at this point.]

[ Alucard's fingers lace into his hair and all at once every nerve in his body snaps to attention, like plants turning to face the sun. It doesn't hurt. It's the one fucking thing that doesn't hurt, and his voice comes out choked. He pushes his head into Alucard's hand slightly. ]

I'm sorry.

[ He needs to gt up. Get up and try to remember where he dropped the crutches and get to work. Downstairs, Sypha is still trying to talk Agatha down and convince her that she doesn't need to rush to her adopted grandchild's side (oh, things are tense between all of them right now, but that doesn't mean Agatha won't storm the castle with Father Robert in tow to make sure he's okay). He needs to get up and take the phone from her, figure out how many people have figured out the extent of Alucard's condition, set about scaring them into silence-

He does none of this, just presses into the hand in his hair and mumbles something unintelligible and- ]

-sorry. Fucked everything up. You deserve better.

Stop apologizing for what happened.

[It's rare for him to ever speak in command form to Trevor. He hates it. But right now, it has to be done. It's a one way ticket to Trevor digging himself into a hole of self loathing, and that doesn't help anyone right now.]

It's done. We move on from here, but that can't happen if you don't give yourself a few hours to at least recover slightly. Failing to do that is the far bigger fuck up.

[He says this all as he strokes Trevor's hair, trying his level best to comfort and to reassure.]

You adjust to the pain, eventually.

[He says that much more softly. Barely a whisper.]

I-

[ He finds himself starting to apologise for apologising. Because of course he does. But then he can't, the words dying in his throat. And- that's okay. At least in part, it's exactly what he wanted. Instruction. ]

It's not the pain. [ It is the pain. But more than that, it's the exhaustion. The way that it feels like there's sandpaper in the places between his bones. ] Just- just tired. So tired.

[ He makes another cautious attempt at movement, inching across the bed to be close to Alucard. ]

Everyone's tired. I can't be special.

You're not special, but you're allowed to rest for at least a brief period.

[...That was the problem, wasn't it? Resting. This wouldn't have happened if they were all balancing their breaks and need to recover better.

It's a revelation that makes the next noise that comes from the vampire even wearier than he feels. As Trevor inches over, he shifts, lying down a little bit more in bed so he can at least be a halfway decent pillow.]

You should have said something instead of being a stoic idiot.

What would that have done? Work'd still need to be done. It'd just be you or Sypha doing it.

[ There aren't other options, not anymore. There are so few people left in the city who they can really trust. He sighs against Alucard, settling against him. ]

It'll be easier soon. This can't last forever. [ It sounds like he's trying to convince himself, not Alucard. ] I just need to keep going until things get easier.

Yes, and then you would have recouped your energy and we wouldn't be dealing with the fact the spell rebounded and now you're in the same state of poor health that I am. The saying about an ounce of prevention being worth a pound of cure is extremely applicable to current circumstances.

[He's a goddamn regent, he could have changed things last minute. It wouldn't be ideal, but it'd be much better than this.]

What you need to do right this instant is take pain killer, eat something, and rest for the day. Believe me, at this point I am an authority on dealing with these injuries.

[He breathes out, aware that there's irritation creeping into his tone.]

Maybe the rebound will wear off after that.

I-

[ Well shit, Alucard is right. But admitting that just means that he fucked up even more badly than he thought he did. He tries to stir again, but doesn't succeed in moving away from Alucard. ]

-medicine cabinet. The iron salts.

[ That's his first thought, if he's going to be focusing on medicine and food. He's lost blood, both from the injury last night and from needing to use it for the spell. ]

Okay.

[Unfortunately all of that means that he must leave the bed. Alucard's hand lingers in Trevor's hair for just a moment more, and he leans down to press a very soft and worried kiss to the top of his head.

He slips out of bed after that, floating to the medicine cabinet. He doesn't walk unless he must in the house. Everything is floating if Trevor isn't carrying him.

After a few moments, Alucard returns. Puts the down water glass and the iron salts in their jar, and then sits beside Trevor.]

Give me your hand. I'll help you sit up.

I didn’t mean-

[ He didn’t mean for Alucard to get the medicine for him. He doesn’t want to force anyone to wait upon him, least of all Alucard as injured as he is. He tries, while Alucard is gone, to find a way to hold himself that doesn’t hurt. There is none. Instead he rolls onto his back, gingerly uncurling himself.

His hand slides into Alucard’s when the hand is offered. ]

I wanted things to be easier. For both of you.

[ There’s a helplessness to the words. He failed at that, too, ]

[Alucard uses his free arm to support Trevor's mid-back, dragging him up as carefully as he can.]

And that's what I wanted for everyone in starting this stupid fight.

[I understand. There's another kiss, this one pressed to Trevor's temple.]

We're all trying to make it easier for each other, and we keep falling over ourselves.

[He has to let go of Trevor's hand to retrieve the salts. Alucard does so with great regret in every part of the movement, but soon a dose is placed into Trevor's hand.]

And we all want to be whole as quickly as possible. So there's stupid mistakes and shortcuts taken. I understand.

[Those words are closer to tired and desperate. He wants all of this to be done. He had prayed that maybe his father would come back with this.

No such luck.]

[ It hurts, but Alucard's hands are there. he can focus on them. It's only when Alucard's hand leaves his that he realises that he's still in his work clothes, and- shit. He doesn't like that one bit. He has rules about this sort of thing, and he's just broken them. But there are a few of the iron pills in his hand. They won't make him not feel like shit, but they'll keep him from becoming too faint when he gets out of bed and gets to work like he is totally going to. ]

I'll do better next time.

[ It's the wrong message to get from this, that he should keep trying to do things the same way and just not fuck up. He forces them down his throat, and it doesn't help in itself but it's practically routine by now. It's normal, and so the pain must be normal. All of this must be normal. ]

Water, please.

[Water, he says, and Alucard is able to give that much. The glass is still in Alucard's hands, and the vampire is quiet as he mulls over the words next time.]

We can't have a next time.

[For this situation, at the very least.]

You need to tell us things are starting to become problems before they get to this state. If I did this to you in turn, you'd be furious at me right now and don't even try to tell me otherwise.

[ He downs the water just little too aggressively to avoid making an unpleasant comment about how Alucard did do this to them both. Without that comment, though, he doesn't have a good response. Because yes, he would be furious. Because- ]

You're important. This is what I'm here for. To deal with this shit so that the people who matter don't have to.

[The words aren't said. Alucard would shrink if they were, be shut up for a good week, and then have nothing else to fight this stupidity with because do as I say, not as I do is an absolute factor here.

Alucard waits until the glass is relinquished, then puts it aside.]

Don't say that you don't matter in this. [On that, the vampire's voice is a little too firm.] You're the only reason we've come this far. You're more important than I am.

Bullshit I am.

[ It's a common argument. Not of the most common, really, if one puts aside the things that don't really matter that much (choosing dinner is too much responsibility for him! What if he decides wrong?). ]

I can't do my job if I matter. I can't do anything worthwhile if I matter.

Do you think I would have survived the aftermath of that fight alone? Serious question.

You wouldn't have been alone. Sypha was there. Bunicuta was there.

[ He sighs. ]

It isn't a bad thing, to be disposable. It's what I want. Belmonts aren't worth shit if they can't be thrown away.

And neither of them would have been able to do what you've been doing, nor the insight into these kinds of politics that I'm terrible at, Sypha would be worse at, and Agatha would....bluntly, I'm still furious with her, and I doubt I would be inclined to listen to her at the time.

[He raises one hand, rubbing slowly at the bridge of his nose.]

Disposable. You've made yourself essential from our perspective, or do you genuinely fail to realize that?

I realise it. I just hate it.

[ With considerable effort, he shuffles in the bed, trying to swing his legs over the side of it. It takes a few tries. ]

Everything my family ever did, we did because no one of us has ever been important. If we mattered, we'd have to be afraid. This is what I am.

[Alucard's arm reaches out and he grabs onto Trevor's collar. Nope.]

You're staying in bed, Belmont. [He never uses the last name. Not unless he's truly annoyed.]

You may be that. But you're much more than that. This house, this family needs you. And it worries me that you don't comprehend how much it aches to hear you talk about yourself like this. Half the time I want to strangle you until you stop, the other time I just...

[There's a miserable noise.]

I'm a loss.

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