You should kill him, then. He leaves the church, sometimes.
[ ...okay, so maybe it's slightly more complicated than THAT. But he doesn't see how there could be fallout from killing him. He isn't particularly good at 'actions have consequences'.
He draws his knees up against his chest, curling his body around the little wooden box of insects that Sypha gave to him and occasionally twisting his head from side to side to follow new scents. ]
The books. She said they were for making childbirth kill fewer people. Is that true?
If only it were that easy. The things priests carry, crucifixes and the like. Those can do me harm. Besides. [Alucard breathes out.] They could find someone worse to take his place. If he dies, the way it happens matters. It should look like the judgement of their God, not the work of some cheap thug.
[Alucard finally withdraws from peering out the window, and when he does, he paces instead. His arms are crossed over his chest, his shoulders are tense, and he is naught but a ball of anxiety.]
Yes. Among other things. My mother is the one who wrote it, and she has made such advanced in medical science that the only right and proper thing is to share her knowledge with the world. She feels compelled to, for the betterment of everyone.
[Alucard pauses, tucking a stray strand of hair behind his ear.]
Resistance to the new is inevitable, but this kind of reaction? This venom? It's unbelievable. My father wants to abandon the venture all together, she won't have it, and they've been fighting about what to do ever since.
Leon forbade us from hunting childbirth. Even if it hurts people. Even if it kills them. Because it does good as well.
[ The world can thank Leon for keeping his children in line at least somewhat. And just be thankful in general that the Belmonts are the only ones of their kind who care about justice instead of just lashing out at random things, because fairies attempting to do good are honestly scarier than the alternative.
He frowns, trying to remember the way that Sypha explained it to him. The concept of 'books' is still a little shaky to him. One of his sisters hoards them, but they just seem like squares of wood, sliced very finely. ]
There are tricks to make it do only good. And the books teach them to people?
If you eliminated the concept of childbirth, you'd eliminate people all together. That was probably the logic there.
[Fae logic is...hard. Alucard can follow it if he tilts his head and squints, trying to be literal, but he doesn't like it one bit. It's too alien, and he was a thing raised by scientists who wanted to add nuance and question every part of the world. The fae are the opposite of that.
At the word trick, he tries not to automatically correct. It's easier, he's found, to try and find what Trevor's latched onto and then elaborate on it. Speaking with authority, but clearly understanding the fae's perspective. It works. Or seems to.]
Essentially, yes. There may still be complications, as nature is impossible to predict, but there are techniques and ways to improve it. And other parts of human health too, that helps stop the spread of things like the plague and other illnesses. But because it's so new, and because it flies in what is thought to be true, you...a man can tell others it is all witchcraft and devils, and they'll take him at his word because in their eyes, he is a man of God and thus an authority.
[With that, Alucard's shoulders slump forward.]
My father would have him strung up in his own church, given the chance. [HE IS NOT HERE. Alucard can see it now.] Then it would be the devil lending credence to the man's argument, and thus making the problem so much worse.
[It could still happen. Alucard loves his father, but the flair for the dramatic is a problem at times.]
They are weapons, then, the books? That humans can hunt the things that hurt them with.
[ This, he understands. This, he approves of. He becomes a little more open as he rocks forward, inclining his head toward the church, and then his newfound ease fades immediately. ]
She smells of anger still. And words, now. Poisonous ones. Her heart is too fast.
[ Arguing. She's arguing. Because of course she is. ]
Think of them as...written instructions and training manuals. Ways to impart the information if a person isn't around to explain it themselves.
[There's a stillness that overcomes the vampire as Trevor explains what's going on. Talking. Shit. That's not good, that could be trouble. He turns on his heel, moving to the door at once.]
If she's talking, she's been found, and that could be trouble in and of itself. C'mon.
[ He nods, putting his box of insects down and pulling glamour over himself like a blanket as he leaves. There isn't a lot of difference. The antlers are gone. The collar and wings are still very much there, but at least look more like a ragged cloak than what they really are. His good eye looks normal instead of a solid icy blue, though the other one is still entirely pearly white and unblinking. That, they'll just have to hope nobody notices.
Not that it would take Alucard a lot of effort to see through the glamour. ]
She's running, now. [ Shit. ] One of us makes a distraction, the other gets her back to the hiding place. Which would you rather do?
[It's an easy call to make. Trevor's in no condition for a fight, that much is clear. Alucard will let the fae take the lead, and that's only because he knows the exact location that Sypha is in. Beyond that, well. He hasn't drawn his sword yet.]
[ ...of course. Of course she's not coming toward the safe place. She's going away from it, so not to lead anyone to Trevor and their hideout. But both of them are faster than her, and hopefully she's faster than her pursuers. Before long, there's a flash of blue turning a corner ahead of them and running down a side street. Behind her, a small group of men. ]
[Alucard sees the flash of blue, and he swears softly. Leave it to Sypha to be too selfless and to abbandon a well thought out plan. To Trevor, he motions over, suggesting that if the fae can pass overhead, then all the better to get Sypha out of their sights.
As for himself, Alucard has an idea. It's risky, but it could pay off. So he runs to the little group that is following Sypha, and he elbows the group aside.]
Move! [He carries himself as a noble. He can act that way if need be.] That speaker stole from my family's home earlier today, whatever your quarrel with her is, mine is far greater! Fall in line if you want any chance of catching a thing that squirrelly.
[Which is all to say: he's going to just lead them away under the guise of having seen the speaker.]
[ A moment, and then Trevor is replaced by a cloud of moths, all of them flying after Sypha. The men do fall in line, ready to follow any authority they can find and unwilling to challenge a nobleman.
The two of them arrive at the hideout before Alucard does. By the time he next knocks, Sypha has complained herself hoarse (they were arguing that women shouldn’t be permitted to read at all, not just the forbidden books) and is instead lying against Trevor’s chest, working out the embers of her anger by twisting the fur of his collar into short, messy braids. The Belmont’s smile could end winters.
Sypha pulls away from him when Alucard enters, checking him for injury. ]
[Alucard can't believe it works, but work it does. They're so willing that it's nearly pitiful, and Alucard leads them away and away and away from the hide out for a good fifteen minutes until he hmphs and says that he'll continue his search on his own, thank you.
It takes him 45 minutes in all to return, being cautious and making sure he isn't followed. He is a bat for a little while, and a wolf, and then a human only once he's back inside. It's the wolf's face that reacts to seeing Sypha laid out on Trevor's chest, and it twists only slightly in confusion.
A better match, at any rate. The stare that lingers at the Belmont's smile though, that's far more unexpected.
The wolf shakes it's entire body, and it is Alucard again.]
Not so much as a scratch. [He doesn't bat away her hands, but he does seem guilty for having them on his person at all.] I'll assume that neither of you are hurt?
[ He does watch carefully as Sypha checks Alucard over. It’s necessary, but seeing it does make his throat burn in a nasty, envious sort of way that he’s not quite sure he understands. ]
Not at all. But she’s-
[ They want to keep the girls here from learning to read!, Sypha complains, sitting down between Alucard and Trevor and returning to the task of heating water for tea - the burning won’t be until tomorrow, and there’s little more they can do tonight without undue risk. They may as well get a few hours rest. She complains. A lot. She’s just about finished and getting her breath back when Trevor starts to pour the tea, and she gently pulls the water pot from his hands. Just because she’s willing to trust him not to give her fairy foos doesn’t mean she expects Alucard to. ]
-the burning is dawn tomorrow. It’s safe to rest a little while.
They're idiots afraid of people gaining more understanding and the ability to interpret the world around them without guidance.
[Alucard's own tone is disdainful. Low key furious, and this is such a personal thing to him. His shoulders rise, hinting at the anger that bubbles underneath, and it's easy to ignore the thoughts of tea or of food or of anything else.]
What is our plan then, at dawn? [They need one.] The kind of thing that stamps out ideologies like this demands that the disapproval not be the work of others voicing a different opinion, but their God Himself.
I've never tried. [ Sypha admits, putting down the kettle, outstretching a hand and focusing. Nothing, not at first. She frowns, trying to visualise lightning. ]
It's air striking other air. Like a flint and steel.
[ Trevor's explanation isn't the most scientifically robust, but it's enough. Wind, Sypha can do. Fire, she understands. She can use that as a starting point, and soon enough sparks of lightning dance in her hand. Trevor is grinning again, proud of her. ]
Goad the man into saying that if he's wrong, may God strike him. Dead would be ideal, although I realize harming a man is against all the Speakers stand for.
[Alucard pauses, tucking a few strands of hair that have wandered behind his ear.]
Nothing less will convince him and the people here he's wrong, I suspect.
[ Sypha curls in on herself a little at that. Using her magic to hurt someone, even someone who is doing so much harm, if it's not in her own defense is- a lot to ask. ]
Is there another way? Something else that might convince them- a storm, or a plague of-
[ ...Trevor no. He looks suddenly very interested at that last one. ]
It's locusts traditionally, anyway. [ Sypha adds, because everyone hates Trevor's idea and nobody will let him go around being too many insects.
But she purses her lips at that, because she's not had dealings with Dracula personally, but she's seen what Dracula's magic did to Trevor even in his absence. It's doubtful he'd show any more mercy to people burning his wife's writings and calling for the head of their author. Experimentally, she makes a few more spares dance over her palm, trying to gauge if she has enough control over them to avoid killing. ]
I'll do it. But one of you needs to be the one to goad him into saying it. Else it'll be obvious that it was my doing.
[Alucard's features all crease, his mouth quirking downward into a concerned frown. He understands what this really means for Sypha, and it's...it feels wrong, demanding this from her.]
[ Sypha sighs, taking the pot of water and leaves and pouring Alucard's tea herself rather than letting Trevor do it. ]
I picked the leaves. [ She says. She conjured and boiled the water, too, and the pot is her own. She's trying to take Alucard's wariness into account. No part of it is fairy food. She settles against Trevor, letting him pour tea for the both of them. He likes moments like this, even if they're all of them tired and even if Sypha and he have been living in a dingy little hideout for the last week in the middle of a city that would at least try to see them all killed. ]
[Alucard’s a wolf before the tea is even done being poured. It’s easier sometimes, being a wolf. Less complicated in terms of thought processes, and situations make their solutions more apparent too. He’s content, curled up and quiet. Warm, if not safe.
His gaze lingers on the two of them for a moment longer. They’re….they’re sweet like this, Sypha moreso. Content. And that’s what they both ought to have, with none of the complications that Alucard’s mere existence brings to it all. It’s always the best to be on the outside, isn’t it?
[ Sypha sighs again, smiling ruefully. She tried. She’s done as much ‘everyone be friends’-ing as she can stand, for now, and if Alucard doesn’t want to be around them any more than necessary, she can’t force him. The two of them sit in silence, staring at the cooling cup, until she retreats to the sole bedroll and Trevor retreats into being moths, sending one of them out through the keyhole to keep watch while the rest of them settle into the corner furthest from Alucard.
Trevor wakes about an hour before sunrise and wakes Sypha, who tears a chunk of bread from their loaf and offers it and a peice of dried meat to him. They don’t offer Alucard breakfast, this time. ]
Work’s starting. [ He says in between bites. Both of his eyes are that milky white, right now, and Sypha keeps having to nudge his arm slightly so the food actually goes in his mouth rather than missing it. His eye-moths are out scouting. ] They’re carrying books out from the church.
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[ ...okay, so maybe it's slightly more complicated than THAT. But he doesn't see how there could be fallout from killing him. He isn't particularly good at 'actions have consequences'.
He draws his knees up against his chest, curling his body around the little wooden box of insects that Sypha gave to him and occasionally twisting his head from side to side to follow new scents. ]
The books. She said they were for making childbirth kill fewer people. Is that true?
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[Alucard finally withdraws from peering out the window, and when he does, he paces instead. His arms are crossed over his chest, his shoulders are tense, and he is naught but a ball of anxiety.]
Yes. Among other things. My mother is the one who wrote it, and she has made such advanced in medical science that the only right and proper thing is to share her knowledge with the world. She feels compelled to, for the betterment of everyone.
[Alucard pauses, tucking a stray strand of hair behind his ear.]
Resistance to the new is inevitable, but this kind of reaction? This venom? It's unbelievable. My father wants to abandon the venture all together, she won't have it, and they've been fighting about what to do ever since.
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[ The world can thank Leon for keeping his children in line at least somewhat. And just be thankful in general that the Belmonts are the only ones of their kind who care about justice instead of just lashing out at random things, because fairies attempting to do good are honestly scarier than the alternative.
He frowns, trying to remember the way that Sypha explained it to him. The concept of 'books' is still a little shaky to him. One of his sisters hoards them, but they just seem like squares of wood, sliced very finely. ]
There are tricks to make it do only good. And the books teach them to people?
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[Fae logic is...hard. Alucard can follow it if he tilts his head and squints, trying to be literal, but he doesn't like it one bit. It's too alien, and he was a thing raised by scientists who wanted to add nuance and question every part of the world. The fae are the opposite of that.
At the word trick, he tries not to automatically correct. It's easier, he's found, to try and find what Trevor's latched onto and then elaborate on it. Speaking with authority, but clearly understanding the fae's perspective. It works. Or seems to.]
Essentially, yes. There may still be complications, as nature is impossible to predict, but there are techniques and ways to improve it. And other parts of human health too, that helps stop the spread of things like the plague and other illnesses. But because it's so new, and because it flies in what is thought to be true, you...a man can tell others it is all witchcraft and devils, and they'll take him at his word because in their eyes, he is a man of God and thus an authority.
[With that, Alucard's shoulders slump forward.]
My father would have him strung up in his own church, given the chance. [HE IS NOT HERE. Alucard can see it now.] Then it would be the devil lending credence to the man's argument, and thus making the problem so much worse.
[It could still happen. Alucard loves his father, but the flair for the dramatic is a problem at times.]
Is she still safe?
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[ This, he understands. This, he approves of. He becomes a little more open as he rocks forward, inclining his head toward the church, and then his newfound ease fades immediately. ]
She smells of anger still. And words, now. Poisonous ones. Her heart is too fast.
[ Arguing. She's arguing. Because of course she is. ]
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[There's a stillness that overcomes the vampire as Trevor explains what's going on. Talking. Shit. That's not good, that could be trouble. He turns on his heel, moving to the door at once.]
If she's talking, she's been found, and that could be trouble in and of itself. C'mon.
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Not that it would take Alucard a lot of effort to see through the glamour. ]
She's running, now. [ Shit. ] One of us makes a distraction, the other gets her back to the hiding place. Which would you rather do?
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[It's an easy call to make. Trevor's in no condition for a fight, that much is clear. Alucard will let the fae take the lead, and that's only because he knows the exact location that Sypha is in. Beyond that, well. He hasn't drawn his sword yet.]
Which way is she?
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[ ...of course. Of course she's not coming toward the safe place. She's going away from it, so not to lead anyone to Trevor and their hideout. But both of them are faster than her, and hopefully she's faster than her pursuers. Before long, there's a flash of blue turning a corner ahead of them and running down a side street. Behind her, a small group of men. ]
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As for himself, Alucard has an idea. It's risky, but it could pay off. So he runs to the little group that is following Sypha, and he elbows the group aside.]
Move! [He carries himself as a noble. He can act that way if need be.] That speaker stole from my family's home earlier today, whatever your quarrel with her is, mine is far greater! Fall in line if you want any chance of catching a thing that squirrelly.
[Which is all to say: he's going to just lead them away under the guise of having seen the speaker.]
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The two of them arrive at the hideout before Alucard does. By the time he next knocks, Sypha has complained herself hoarse (they were arguing that women shouldn’t be permitted to read at all, not just the forbidden books) and is instead lying against Trevor’s chest, working out the embers of her anger by twisting the fur of his collar into short, messy braids. The Belmont’s smile could end winters.
Sypha pulls away from him when Alucard enters, checking him for injury. ]
Run into any trouble?
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It takes him 45 minutes in all to return, being cautious and making sure he isn't followed. He is a bat for a little while, and a wolf, and then a human only once he's back inside. It's the wolf's face that reacts to seeing Sypha laid out on Trevor's chest, and it twists only slightly in confusion.
A better match, at any rate. The stare that lingers at the Belmont's smile though, that's far more unexpected.
The wolf shakes it's entire body, and it is Alucard again.]
Not so much as a scratch. [He doesn't bat away her hands, but he does seem guilty for having them on his person at all.] I'll assume that neither of you are hurt?
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Not at all. But she’s-
[ They want to keep the girls here from learning to read!, Sypha complains, sitting down between Alucard and Trevor and returning to the task of heating water for tea - the burning won’t be until tomorrow, and there’s little more they can do tonight without undue risk. They may as well get a few hours rest. She complains. A lot. She’s just about finished and getting her breath back when Trevor starts to pour the tea, and she gently pulls the water pot from his hands. Just because she’s willing to trust him not to give her fairy foos doesn’t mean she expects Alucard to. ]
-the burning is dawn tomorrow. It’s safe to rest a little while.
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[Alucard's own tone is disdainful. Low key furious, and this is such a personal thing to him. His shoulders rise, hinting at the anger that bubbles underneath, and it's easy to ignore the thoughts of tea or of food or of anything else.]
What is our plan then, at dawn? [They need one.] The kind of thing that stamps out ideologies like this demands that the disapproval not be the work of others voicing a different opinion, but their God Himself.
[He pauses, then considers this.]
Can either of you make lightning?
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It's air striking other air. Like a flint and steel.
[ Trevor's explanation isn't the most scientifically robust, but it's enough. Wind, Sypha can do. Fire, she understands. She can use that as a starting point, and soon enough sparks of lightning dance in her hand. Trevor is grinning again, proud of her. ]
What is your plan? Will this work?
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[Alucard pauses, tucking a few strands of hair that have wandered behind his ear.]
Nothing less will convince him and the people here he's wrong, I suspect.
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Is there another way? Something else that might convince them- a storm, or a plague of-
[ ...Trevor no. He looks suddenly very interested at that last one. ]
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[If anything, Dracula would be a little too excited. Alucard's eyes go to Trevor, and he sees that excitement over the p-word.]
No, no plague.
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But she purses her lips at that, because she's not had dealings with Dracula personally, but she's seen what Dracula's magic did to Trevor even in his absence. It's doubtful he'd show any more mercy to people burning his wife's writings and calling for the head of their author. Experimentally, she makes a few more spares dance over her palm, trying to gauge if she has enough control over them to avoid killing. ]
I'll do it. But one of you needs to be the one to goad him into saying it. Else it'll be obvious that it was my doing.
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[Alucard's features all crease, his mouth quirking downward into a concerned frown. He understands what this really means for Sypha, and it's...it feels wrong, demanding this from her.]
I'll take care of the crowd work.
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[ She'd really rather not have Dracula here. Trevor nods. ]
I'll just- be there. In case anything goes wrong.
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[And he does. Alucard has never had any illusions about his father and what he really is.
With that, the vampire sighs.]
We should rest until an hour before dawn
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I picked the leaves. [ She says. She conjured and boiled the water, too, and the pot is her own. She's trying to take Alucard's wariness into account. No part of it is fairy food. She settles against Trevor, letting him pour tea for the both of them. He likes moments like this, even if they're all of them tired and even if Sypha and he have been living in a dingy little hideout for the last week in the middle of a city that would at least try to see them all killed. ]
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His gaze lingers on the two of them for a moment longer. They’re….they’re sweet like this, Sypha moreso. Content. And that’s what they both ought to have, with none of the complications that Alucard’s mere existence brings to it all. It’s always the best to be on the outside, isn’t it?
He closes his eyes and lets the tea grow cold.]
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Trevor wakes about an hour before sunrise and wakes Sypha, who tears a chunk of bread from their loaf and offers it and a peice of dried meat to him. They don’t offer Alucard breakfast, this time. ]
Work’s starting. [ He says in between bites. Both of his eyes are that milky white, right now, and Sypha keeps having to nudge his arm slightly so the food actually goes in his mouth rather than missing it. His eye-moths are out scouting. ] They’re carrying books out from the church.
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