[Alucard's already accepted the wings as a sort of shield for the time being. He may not be proud of the fact they give him a measure of comfort, but that's where they're at this point. He will take any scrap of comfort as he can get it.
His hand remains in Trevor's as they move through the woods, looking down every so often to ensure the forest floor isn't so dense. Instead, the world expands under his feet and...]
If it shouldn't be there, then I don't think we ought to trust it.
[Then he stops, looking at Trevor with a greater concern in his eye.]
We are. Keenly, if this is any indication. You said you wanted an inside place, and-
[ And one has appeared. Because of course. ]
I think this is as alone as we're going to get. [ And then after a moment, because he has no idea how long they've been walking. The sun doesn't move. He doesn't really grow hungry or thirsty, he's too on edge to grow bored. ] How are you feeling?
She might lose interest, if we have it done with. You could rest then. [ But tired is good. Tired isn't hungry. They dont' have to resolve that issue yet. ] But- it's probably going to be shitty. It's your choice.
[Alucard considers this. He considers it for a very long moment, and then he straightens up entirely. The wings that were curled around himself are moved back to where they ought to be, and when he steps forward (Trevor's hand remains in his, he understands that this is required) it's with the same kind of stalking movement that Dracula relies upon.
If the goal is to be bored, then what is more boring than simply aping Dracula being bored and zoned out from whatever the situation at hand is?]
Onward then. If you suspect the structure is impacting perception, remove me from the space immediately.
[Those are commands. Alucard's learned how to issue them from Sypha, but rarely has it been in Dracula Voice.]
[ It’s an order. He doesn’t get those often, not unless Sypha thinks he’s in danger. Trevor freezes for a moment and then his arms hook around Alucard’s back and the back of his legs, lifting him.
It’s a poorly worded order. ‘Remove me’, not ‘Lead me away’. ]
[ He's quick to put Alucard down, taking him by the hand again instead. ]
Yeah, you- need to be specific with that shit. Even Sypha struggles with it sometimes.
[ They probably have failed at the aim of not being interesting, but he leads Alucard away from the structure, as far as he can without looping back closer to the queen. ]
I'll try and improve. Forgive me if there's a steep learning curve.
[The tent is almost silver. That feels like mockery too.
With each step towards it though, there's a visible shift in Alucard's demeanor A stiffness, a posture that borders on looming, shoulders back, eyes dead ahead, body temperature even lower than normal. Be boring. Be predictable. Be every inch Dracula's son, and something willing, that will be the end of it.
There is no one else in the tent, which does not put the vampire at ease. Oh, there are soft furnishings everywhere, beautiful rugs that would put the Persians to shame, the golden thread flickering from the light that comes in on the other side, and tapestries of great feasts and hunts line every wall. There is no dais in the center, but ringed around the space are low cushions, the kind that the Turks lounge on in their own opulent palaces.
Alucard's gaze, now a cold and hardened thing, moves to Trevor. In that look there is a single question is this safe?]
[ Oh course they find themselves back at the tent. He enters first, turning his head about to feel at the air for the thick, syrupy sensation of magic. And it's here, but no more than it ought to be. Nothing that should alter anyone's behaviour. He lets go of Alucard's hand, sighing. ]
Nothing that'd make anyone act- different. [ Horny. ] And- something blocking surveillance. That part could change, if she wanted it to, but it's-
[ -exactly what Alucard claimed to have wanted, which means there must be some catch. For example, the minor catch that Dracula might find his son untraceable by any magical means and be upset about this. ]
[Which is, in fact, what is happening now in the outside world. Word has been passed along down the line, and deep in his crypt (Dracula stays there during the longest day of the year as a matter of course, as much as he loathes to be out of his bed), there is a rage that even gives Lisa pause.
The rabbit wouldn't have even made it to a stick.
At Trevor's analysis, Alucard sighs, but he does not let his guard down. The most he does is take a seat to the left side of the tent, ramrod straight and eyes lingering towards the door.]
If you exit, are we returned to the same place we were moments ago?
...that seems like testing it would be an easy way to separate us.
[ But he can spare a finger's worth of moths, at least. He sends them out of the doors of the spidersilk structure. Sure enough, they can't return. Not immediately. Maybe they'll be back once they find where the structure's left them and moved to. ]
It'll move us somewhere else, if we leave. To- [ He freezes as he tries to look through the eyes of his missing moths. ] -to her side. Of course.
[That's the other shoe dropped then, if Alucard had to hazard a guess. He's wrong, but he doesn't know that yet.]
Then we're trapped here until circumstances change.
[There's a curious lack of any emotion in the vampire's voice, whereas not moments ago he had been all fear and raw vulnerability. Golden eyes blink, and Alucard then carefully removes the sun glasses and wide brimmed hat he had been using as armor earlier. They don't have a place with channeling his father.]
I think that if that is the case, I'd feel safer with you next to me.
[ It's something he already knows is true - this is a dangerous place and he and his family have proven themselves allies of sorts to Alucard. It doesn't mean anything special, that Alucard feels safer with him than without. His heart still swells to hear it. He smiles despite everything, sitting one seat away from Alucard. Not directly next to him, but close enough to reach over the empty space between them to touch if he needs.
It's fond, the way he looks at Alucard in the absence of immediate danger. Even now. The same impossibly fond way he looks at Sypha, as if whatever part of him is moths is transfixed by light. He's precious, even if he's too precious for Trevor to have. ]
You'll return home whole at the end of this. I swear it.
[Alucard understands that oaths with fae carry weight. He imagines in spaces such as the one they are in now, those oaths must be even more weighted. There's a moment when he closes his eyes, centering all of himself for whatever is bound to come through that door. This seems more about humiliation than anything else, and that means treating it as an endurance run.
When his eyes flick open again, he catches Trevor's expression out of the corner of his eye. In any other time or place, he'd be deeply concerned about it, that Trevor might try something again.
Now though, it just feels like extra insurance.]
This still doesn't feel like the whole of what this place is meant to do to me.
[ It's grim, but he can't keep the contentment out of his voice. Alucard feels safer with him here. Alucard wants him here, even if just for now. People don't usually want him around. It's nice, if he can put out of his mind the danger and the knowledge that it's only because the alternative is worse.
Even if it won't last, and even if it's all it'll ever be, he's wanted, and that's more than he could ever ask for. Guilt twists into the back of this throat like a corkscrew - this is the worst thing Alucard could experience, and he's glad for it - but even that can't keep him from the warm feeling. ]
Nor would I expect you to. This matter is complicated on your end, I'm sure.
[Because how many complications already exist between the two of them thanks to Trevor's old impulses? Dracula's protective and possessive nature brought consequence into sharp relief, and now...
...well, now this. Trevor's loyalties have to be put between queen and keeping a more important peace, and that cannot be an easy thing.
There's quiet from Alucard after that statement, and then there is movement beyond the tent's door. The flap opens, and Alucard braces himself.
Softly, he looks to Trevor for a beat, then back to the tent.]
[ His hand, minus a finger, moves to Alucard's to grasp it. ]
I claimed him. He will stay with me.
[ He can only say so much, because a lot of the things that those statements imply are untrue. He has to trust that the statements themselves will serve to drive off suitors or attackers alike.
Alucard receives guests. Some are genuine suitors, and Trevor waits for Alucard's permission to dismiss them. Others come to mock. One comes to offer to put a good word in with the queen in return for Alucard's hair. Most just come to gawk at the queen's newest interest, especially after one of them tears at the wall of the tent to allow sunlight to fall directly onto Alucard's face. Trevor holds Alucard's hand throughout, speaking only when prompted, trying to follow Alucard's lead and show no response. To be boring. Eventually - and it might have been whole days - they lose interest. The crowd thins to nothing, and they are left alone. ]
[They're true enough words, no lie. Trevor did do as he said, but the validity of the claim is where the debate lies. But for now, it's a comfort, and Alucard squeezes Trevor's hand once to show that he understands what those words mean in this context.
So the nonsense begins.
Time does not work properly, so Alucard does not attempt to track hours wasted on the parade that passes before him, each participant with their own intent. He sits tall and stately, always looming by power of how he carries himself and no other magic. Those with romantic intentions are stared down with no response - if Trevor has claimed him, then it is better Trevor replies. Those that mock are met with a quiet, judgemental stare of gold eyes that threaten to flick red, but no verbal response. He waits those out, letting words slide off of him like water from a duck's back. They grate, (tainted blood is used more than once, oh yes) but that is the only thing they're allowed to do.
The gawking is still met with the stately stare, but it transgresses into betraying how boring ths is, or occassionally, how weary the process has made Alucard. He catches it quickly each time, corrects it, and so they make it through.
(That one who tries to shower the vampire in sunlight only gets a And....? in response, dripping with complete dismissal. They move on.)
Then there are none. Alucard looks to the tent once, and certain that they're home free, sighs and rearranges himself on the sofa so that he is lying down.]
I don't smell any. [ A long pause, and then he tilts his head, feeling at the air. ] Juliet returned not long ago, so Sypha must at least be on her way. And- they're paying attention to her, for some reason.
[ It's a story, they'll learn eventually. Sypha gave her a story, one of the few that the speakers had aimed to frustrate the fae by keeping secret. It's a heavy price to pay, but avoiding the sort of carnage that might follow this is worth it.
Good. That's...Sypha'll have some clever plan that explains the attention.
[Because that's what Sypha is best for, isn't it? Being so, so, so clever. Alucard always smiled when it happened, a flash of absolute brilliance that he could only sit and admire because what else does one do around Sypha?
She's such a good match for Trevor. And he'll be there for her, because Alucard won't be.
Safe for now. Alucard closes his eyes.]
Are we still returned to the Queen's side if we leave this place?
No. It leads back into the woods. Her highness has something new to entertain her for now.
[ He watches as Alucard closes his eyes. He can't blame the man for being tired. It's been exhausting even from the side. But he's concerned, because exhaustion isn't the only problem. ]
[ He moves closer, sitting by Alucard. Not hungry. Thank fuck. But he sighs anyway, tired and still adoring but now in a painful way. It’s a little sad, to talk so much of something that won’t ever be. ]
You’ll be leaving us after this, won’t you? She’ll- she’ll miss you. She always does. I’m sorry you had to leave us this way.
[ Easier to focus on Sypha than himself. Easier, a little, to think of how things might have been between the two of them without a Belmont ruining everything. ]
She wanted to be closer to you. But- I ruined that for her. I don’t blame you for being so distant from her, but- she isn’t like me. She wouldn’t have hurt you or scared you or anything. I’m sorry. For all of that.
Mm, I imagine that I won't be allowed out of the castle for a year, if not more than that. [That's a frank assessment, one that doesn't have any emotional weight to it. All Alucard is doing at the moment is stating the painfully obvious.] Although I don't think you're the threat in his eyes anymore. Not in any important way.
[Dracula will keep cursing the Belmont name, of course he will. But the Belmonts are not so bothersome as the Queen, and she has already tried to fight Dracula for power over one of the two things he values most in the world.
His hand takes Trevor's gently.]
She might have wanted that, but she has you. You're far better suited for each other than I could ever hope to strive to be. She brings out the best in you, and vice versa. You're already happy together.
[It's unclear who he's referring to there, Sypha or Trevor.
But then there's something internally that strikes within Alucard, and he breathes out a soft swear.]
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His hand remains in Trevor's as they move through the woods, looking down every so often to ensure the forest floor isn't so dense. Instead, the world expands under his feet and...]
If it shouldn't be there, then I don't think we ought to trust it.
[Then he stops, looking at Trevor with a greater concern in his eye.]
We've being watched, I presume.
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[ And one has appeared. Because of course. ]
I think this is as alone as we're going to get. [ And then after a moment, because he has no idea how long they've been walking. The sun doesn't move. He doesn't really grow hungry or thirsty, he's too on edge to grow bored. ] How are you feeling?
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[Alucard lets out a long, tired noise at that. He can't pull the wings closer around himself, not anymore.]
Tired. I'd try to nap, but I doubt that would solve any of the problems at hand. If anything, it might create new ones.
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She might lose interest, if we have it done with. You could rest then. [ But tired is good. Tired isn't hungry. They dont' have to resolve that issue yet. ] But- it's probably going to be shitty. It's your choice.
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If the goal is to be bored, then what is more boring than simply aping Dracula being bored and zoned out from whatever the situation at hand is?]
Onward then. If you suspect the structure is impacting perception, remove me from the space immediately.
[Those are commands. Alucard's learned how to issue them from Sypha, but rarely has it been in Dracula Voice.]
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It’s a poorly worded order. ‘Remove me’, not ‘Lead me away’. ]
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Crap, he's still terrible at this.]
Okay, okay, lead me away, not this!
[It's probably a good mistake to make with eyes on him. It makes him look slightly stupider, and easier to underestimate.]
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Yeah, you- need to be specific with that shit. Even Sypha struggles with it sometimes.
[ They probably have failed at the aim of not being interesting, but he leads Alucard away from the structure, as far as he can without looping back closer to the queen. ]
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[The tent is almost silver. That feels like mockery too.
With each step towards it though, there's a visible shift in Alucard's demeanor A stiffness, a posture that borders on looming, shoulders back, eyes dead ahead, body temperature even lower than normal. Be boring. Be predictable. Be every inch Dracula's son, and something willing, that will be the end of it.
There is no one else in the tent, which does not put the vampire at ease. Oh, there are soft furnishings everywhere, beautiful rugs that would put the Persians to shame, the golden thread flickering from the light that comes in on the other side, and tapestries of great feasts and hunts line every wall. There is no dais in the center, but ringed around the space are low cushions, the kind that the Turks lounge on in their own opulent palaces.
Alucard's gaze, now a cold and hardened thing, moves to Trevor. In that look there is a single question is this safe?]
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Nothing that'd make anyone act- different. [ Horny. ] And- something blocking surveillance. That part could change, if she wanted it to, but it's-
[ -exactly what Alucard claimed to have wanted, which means there must be some catch. For example, the minor catch that Dracula might find his son untraceable by any magical means and be upset about this. ]
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The rabbit wouldn't have even made it to a stick.
At Trevor's analysis, Alucard sighs, but he does not let his guard down. The most he does is take a seat to the left side of the tent, ramrod straight and eyes lingering towards the door.]
If you exit, are we returned to the same place we were moments ago?
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[ But he can spare a finger's worth of moths, at least. He sends them out of the doors of the spidersilk structure. Sure enough, they can't return. Not immediately. Maybe they'll be back once they find where the structure's left them and moved to. ]
It'll move us somewhere else, if we leave. To- [ He freezes as he tries to look through the eyes of his missing moths. ] -to her side. Of course.
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[That's the other shoe dropped then, if Alucard had to hazard a guess. He's wrong, but he doesn't know that yet.]
Then we're trapped here until circumstances change.
[There's a curious lack of any emotion in the vampire's voice, whereas not moments ago he had been all fear and raw vulnerability. Golden eyes blink, and Alucard then carefully removes the sun glasses and wide brimmed hat he had been using as armor earlier. They don't have a place with channeling his father.]
I think that if that is the case, I'd feel safer with you next to me.
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It's fond, the way he looks at Alucard in the absence of immediate danger. Even now. The same impossibly fond way he looks at Sypha, as if whatever part of him is moths is transfixed by light. He's precious, even if he's too precious for Trevor to have. ]
You'll return home whole at the end of this. I swear it.
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[Alucard understands that oaths with fae carry weight. He imagines in spaces such as the one they are in now, those oaths must be even more weighted. There's a moment when he closes his eyes, centering all of himself for whatever is bound to come through that door. This seems more about humiliation than anything else, and that means treating it as an endurance run.
When his eyes flick open again, he catches Trevor's expression out of the corner of his eye. In any other time or place, he'd be deeply concerned about it, that Trevor might try something again.
Now though, it just feels like extra insurance.]
This still doesn't feel like the whole of what this place is meant to do to me.
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[ It's grim, but he can't keep the contentment out of his voice. Alucard feels safer with him here. Alucard wants him here, even if just for now. People don't usually want him around. It's nice, if he can put out of his mind the danger and the knowledge that it's only because the alternative is worse.
Even if it won't last, and even if it's all it'll ever be, he's wanted, and that's more than he could ever ask for. Guilt twists into the back of this throat like a corkscrew - this is the worst thing Alucard could experience, and he's glad for it - but even that can't keep him from the warm feeling. ]
I can't tell you more. I'm sorry.
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[Because how many complications already exist between the two of them thanks to Trevor's old impulses? Dracula's protective and possessive nature brought consequence into sharp relief, and now...
...well, now this. Trevor's loyalties have to be put between queen and keeping a more important peace, and that cannot be an easy thing.
There's quiet from Alucard after that statement, and then there is movement beyond the tent's door. The flap opens, and Alucard braces himself.
Softly, he looks to Trevor for a beat, then back to the tent.]
Belmont.
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I claimed him. He will stay with me.
[ He can only say so much, because a lot of the things that those statements imply are untrue. He has to trust that the statements themselves will serve to drive off suitors or attackers alike.
Alucard receives guests. Some are genuine suitors, and Trevor waits for Alucard's permission to dismiss them. Others come to mock. One comes to offer to put a good word in with the queen in return for Alucard's hair. Most just come to gawk at the queen's newest interest, especially after one of them tears at the wall of the tent to allow sunlight to fall directly onto Alucard's face. Trevor holds Alucard's hand throughout, speaking only when prompted, trying to follow Alucard's lead and show no response. To be boring. Eventually - and it might have been whole days - they lose interest. The crowd thins to nothing, and they are left alone. ]
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So the nonsense begins.
Time does not work properly, so Alucard does not attempt to track hours wasted on the parade that passes before him, each participant with their own intent. He sits tall and stately, always looming by power of how he carries himself and no other magic. Those with romantic intentions are stared down with no response - if Trevor has claimed him, then it is better Trevor replies. Those that mock are met with a quiet, judgemental stare of gold eyes that threaten to flick red, but no verbal response. He waits those out, letting words slide off of him like water from a duck's back. They grate, (tainted blood is used more than once, oh yes) but that is the only thing they're allowed to do.
The gawking is still met with the stately stare, but it transgresses into betraying how boring ths is, or occassionally, how weary the process has made Alucard. He catches it quickly each time, corrects it, and so they make it through.
(That one who tries to shower the vampire in sunlight only gets a And....? in response, dripping with complete dismissal. They move on.)
Then there are none. Alucard looks to the tent once, and certain that they're home free, sighs and rearranges himself on the sofa so that he is lying down.]
Is there any sign of another approaching?
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[ It's a story, they'll learn eventually. Sypha gave her a story, one of the few that the speakers had aimed to frustrate the fae by keeping secret. It's a heavy price to pay, but avoiding the sort of carnage that might follow this is worth it.
He slumps forward a little. ]
Safe for now.
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[Because that's what Sypha is best for, isn't it? Being so, so, so clever. Alucard always smiled when it happened, a flash of absolute brilliance that he could only sit and admire because what else does one do around Sypha?
She's such a good match for Trevor. And he'll be there for her, because Alucard won't be.
Safe for now. Alucard closes his eyes.]
Are we still returned to the Queen's side if we leave this place?
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No. It leads back into the woods. Her highness has something new to entertain her for now.
[ He watches as Alucard closes his eyes. He can't blame the man for being tired. It's been exhausting even from the side. But he's concerned, because exhaustion isn't the only problem. ]
How do you feel?
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Tired. Anything else is secondary.
(Tired means not hungry which is good.)
You can sit here, if you want. It might look better.
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You’ll be leaving us after this, won’t you? She’ll- she’ll miss you. She always does. I’m sorry you had to leave us this way.
[ Easier to focus on Sypha than himself. Easier, a little, to think of how things might have been between the two of them without a Belmont ruining everything. ]
She wanted to be closer to you. But- I ruined that for her. I don’t blame you for being so distant from her, but- she isn’t like me. She wouldn’t have hurt you or scared you or anything. I’m sorry. For all of that.
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[Dracula will keep cursing the Belmont name, of course he will. But the Belmonts are not so bothersome as the Queen, and she has already tried to fight Dracula for power over one of the two things he values most in the world.
His hand takes Trevor's gently.]
She might have wanted that, but she has you. You're far better suited for each other than I could ever hope to strive to be. She brings out the best in you, and vice versa. You're already happy together.
[It's unclear who he's referring to there, Sypha or Trevor.
But then there's something internally that strikes within Alucard, and he breathes out a soft swear.]
...Tired has a companion. Of course it does.
[It isn't only hunger, but That Hunger.]
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