cryptsleeper: (Default)
Alucard \\ Adrian F. Ţepeş ([personal profile] cryptsleeper) wrote2018-11-01 07:51 pm
whipboi: (If lies were cats you'd be a litter)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-07 02:27 am (UTC)(link)
[Even two steps from death, Trevor's contrariness threatens to rear its head. Adrian says: You can't move, and that rebellious little part of Trevor's mind replies: Make me. But it takes every last dreg of his strength to remain upright against the -- frankly soggy -- tree stump, and he can't quite find the breath to argue when the order's given.

So he stays quiet (for once), limp and useless and quite sure this damned forest is going to be his final resting place. And that's-- That's all right, he supposes. There are worse places he could imagine (Dracula's castle is the top of that list), and if nothing else, he's gone down fighting. Maybe he's made Adrian and Sypha's jobs just a tad easier, taking so many of the creatures out as his dying act.

Will they miss him? Probably be better off, but--
]

Adrian... [His voice is small, breathless, but Adrian would hear it in the stillness of the clearing.] Thank you for coming. If I don't make it, don't blame yourself. Give Sypha my love. Get a dog and name it after me. Something big. Like one of those wolf-hounds.
whipboi: (If I stop now call me a quitter)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-08 04:23 am (UTC)(link)
[Trevor has to think, to dig deep for the answer to that question. Antivenom kit? He had an antivenom kit? When had that ever been an option? When had he started--

And then it comes to him. A close scrape nearly two months prior that left him relatively unharmed, but sent Adrian and Sypha into a frenzy. They demanded to know why he hadn't come home sooner, chastised him for going alone in the first place, and while they begrudgingly accepted that they couldn't control Trevor's tendency to wander off, they made him promise to take precautions moving forward. Sypha even took it upon herself to compile what she called essentials, rattled off the use of each little kit -- some magical, some alchemical, some practical -- and Trevor had mostly ignored the explanations in favor of worrying over how much bag space this would take up. Bless Adrian and Sypha's paranoia.

But it was important to them, so he kept it at the bottom of his pack during every journey. And there it lay still, satchel still firmly slung cross-body from Trevor's left shoulder.
]

It's here. [Another vague motion toward the bag at his side, as he has been ordered not to move.] Bottom of the pack, I think.
whipboi: (Pleasing everyone isn't like you)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-09 02:40 am (UTC)(link)
[Trevor, in his current state, can only manage a sharp hiss in response to the injection. Were he whole and well, he'd be cursing Adrian to the seventh layer of hell and back again, because for a long moment, he's quite sure he'd rather die. He's cauterized open wounds with a hot iron that burned less than this. It feels like Adrian's dunked the entirety of his forearm into magma and let it sit for a lark. Was that shit antivenom or acid?]

Please don't.

[That Trevor has the strength to grit his teeth through the words is promising. The sting is slow to fade, but it does, along with the worst of the pain from the bite. Trevor wonders if they'd added something to take the edge off, before quickly arriving at the decision that Sypha and Adrian would probably not elect to make his life easier if he'd gotten to the point he needed to use this kit in the first place. He can practically hear Sypha, If he's been that reckless, he can deal with a little pain.

Unbidden, Trevor reaches out to rest his hand over one of Adrian's. It's filthy -- caked with mud and gore and God knows what else besides -- absent his gloves, because it's always been easier to wield the Morning Star without them. But that small bit of comfort, of touch, is essential just now, even as he feels his heart evening out and strengthening from its feeble staccato. The antivenom is working, and he had no doubt it would, but that's--

That's somewhat less of a relief than he thought it would be.
]

I'm serious about the dog, you know.
whipboi: (Oh you'll probably go to Heaven)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-09 03:11 am (UTC)(link)
[Trevor chuckles, and heaves a slow sigh as his nausea begins to ebb. He doesn't know or care how it's working. He's suddenly feeling a good deal better, and he can't help thinking he's somehow narrowly evaded death's clutches yet again.

Someday, he won't be so lucky. Someday, Adrian or Sypha will find him a stinking corpse in the forests. Or they won't find him at all. Or they'll watch the life leave his eyes in the heat of battle. But that's the grim reality of their work together, that's the bitter pill they all can't seem to swallow. Trevor's the dumb brute. Trevor's luck can't last forever. Trevor's going to go first.

And he's all right with that. Mostly. Better to go first than have to deal with the emotional aftermath of any other possibility.

Trevor glances down at the wound. It's-- seeping is the best word for it, but that's not entirely accurate. Magic or science or whatever is purging this shit from his system has a truly disgusting way of doing so, and it makes his stomach revolt all over again.
]

Do you have water? I lost my canteen somewhere. [And his mouth is like a desert, despite feeling like he needs to vomit again.]
whipboi: (If lies were cats you'd be a litter)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-10 05:27 pm (UTC)(link)
You can't be angry with me this time. I told you where I was going.

[Truthfully, Adrian still has every right to be angry with him. He didn't have to stay and fight a horde of forged creatures when he realized he'd tripped their alarm. He could have fled, could have high-tailed it back to the manor, and they could have awaited Sypha's return to launch a proper assault. But he chose to stay and fight. And that choice is precisely what landed them in this less-than-ideal situation.

But Trevor is grateful enough for the water that he takes a moment to seriously ponder the question. Hindsight tends to paint the best course of action, but in the moment? It simply doesn't seem like there's any other choice.
]

I wasn't expecting to walk straight into an ambush. It doesn't seem like a wise idea to turn your back on them to run. What other options did I have?
whipboi: (Please don't hang your head and cry)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-10 11:21 pm (UTC)(link)
[How is he supposed to argue with that, really? Unlike last time, he probably (absolutely) would be dead, had Adrian not come to find him. It takes the air from him, and he stares up at the bare branches above them for a long contemplative moment. At length, he carefully begins to flex the fingers in his injured hand. He can still move them, at least. That's promising.]

Fine.

[It's as close to an apology as Adrian's likely to get, coupled as it is with a defeated sigh.]

Can we get out of this damned forest, please?
whipboi: (Convincing people to like you)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-12 02:22 am (UTC)(link)
[For once, Trevor doesn't argue with the notion of a bath. Not that he has the strength to refuse it at this juncture, but he's not genuinely thrown off until Adrian's last question.

Would he be acting the same? Why should he act any differently? But the answer's as immediate as it's asked. Because while they terrify Trevor in equal measure, he still seems to be under the impression that Adrian wouldn't care if anything befell Trevor. Or that he wasn't important enough for anyone to warrant mourning. Or that they were both better off -- more effective -- without him anyway. Adrian and Sypha make Trevor better, and make him want to be better. But he doesn't believe for a second that he's more than a whining child to either of them, and he's only himself to blame for it.

Adrian is a vampire prince. Sypha is a magickal powerhouse. Trevor can throw a punch. Useless.

Trevor sighs, and rolls his head forward again, trying to find the words to put to this.
]

You don't think you'd handle it better than she would? Not that I'd wish it on either of you, but if one of you were to find me gone...

[He'd want it to be Adrian. He'd trust Adrian to do what needed to be done, were he turned into some monstrosity, raised or forged or however the fuck these bastards toyed with their dead. But that's not permission to be reckless, and Trevor realizes -- perhaps a beat too late -- that he shouldn't treat it as such.]

We'll go together from now on, all right? All three of us. You have my word.

[But rather than conviction, it comes out dull. Defeated.]
whipboi: (If I stop now call me a quitter)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-13 02:31 am (UTC)(link)
[Alcohol -- not just poured, but scrubbed into an open wound -- is enough to take the breath out of him again. His teeth are grit hard enough to make his head throb, and his breath redoubles to catch up with itself when he finds it again. At least he's managed not to cry out. And he'd thank Adrian for the consideration if his head weren't now swimming from the pained delirium.

It takes a long moment to come back to himself, to find the thread of conversation and pick it up again.
]

If you'd been even a candlemark later, I'd be dead. And unless you're not telling me something, you had no way of knowing how dire my need. So tell me how you think that's a gamble I'd willingly take.

So yes. I suppose I'd do this exact same kind of shit with Sypha around.
whipboi: (If I stop now call me a quitter)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-13 04:42 am (UTC)(link)
[Adrian actually manages to pry a grunt out of Trevor before the job's done. And a glare. He has to know that was entirely unnecessary, and from the look of him, he couldn't care less.]

Better now you're not trying to rip my damn arm off, thank you.

[And still, Trevor knows it's no more than he deserves.]
whipboi: (If I stop now call me a quitter)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-14 01:46 am (UTC)(link)
Oh would you? I've always wanted you to treat me like a princess.

[Trevor rolls his eyes, tries to push himself up from his stump perch.]

I'll be fine. Just give me a moment.
whipboi: (Dancing jigs until I'm crippled)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-14 05:24 am (UTC)(link)
[Given that Adrian is all heart tonight, Trevor can't help feeling this is merely the illusion of choice. He would be carried, either against his will or of his own volition, and Adrian's merely giving him the opportunity to preserve his dignity.

Which he'll take, as obnoxiously as he can manage.
]

Fine. [Trevor sighs, and holds an arm up for Adrian to help him.] Carry me, my prince.
whipboi: (If lies were cats you'd be a litter)

[personal profile] whipboi 2019-10-15 03:06 am (UTC)(link)
[It doesn't only look ridiculous, it feels ridiculous. Logically, Trevor knows Adrian can toss him around whenever he pleases, but knowing the dhampir's capabilities rarely makes the reality of it easier to digest. It's a sobering reminder; Adrian allows Trevor to touch him -- hell, allows Trevor to live -- simply because Trevor has earned the privilege.

Gingerly, Trevor lifts his bandaged arm around Adrian's shoulders. He's not sure how this is meant to be more comfortable for him, but he's too chuffed and tired to argue at the moment.
]

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