[If Alucard didn't know where he was, he'd be far more alarmed with how the place shifts and moves with him. Doors that go no where. Walls that move with him. Nothing outside the windows besides an approximation of sunlight.
Alucard understands. It's a jail cell. Just with more comforts than he usually has in such places.
He's still too worn to panic. Part of him? Part of him wonders if maybe he should just stop questioning it and be confined here. It's a nicer place to spend his days, although it isn't clear what the Belmont wants from him yet.]
Most likely not, and yet.
[He's ignoring the pain because he has to move around. He can't be in bed forever.]
How long does time pass here compared to the human world?
[That wasn't what he was asking, but it is good to know all the same. Alucard considers it and--
--a few months. The worst of winter will pass at least, and he can make deals until then. Little ones. Ones that let him survive, just as they always have.
Alucard doesn't take the offered arm. He simply sees himself back to bed, carefully lowering himself onto it.]
I see. That's good to know.
[He settles at least, then crosses one leg over the other so he can look at the soles of his feet.]
Why did you break the agreement between our families?
[ He was going to repeat that he didn't know. But he knows well enough that ignorance is no excuse, and also? It's not the truth. He was listening through that whole confession. Alucard gave his name. He knew. He pulls the reading chair closer to the bed, sitting in it to join in the examination. ]
-I tried to be indirect, and it didn't work. So I decided I didn't care about the agreement.
[Alucard's feet are no longer red and raw blisters. So much of them now is thick skin trying to heal. Struggling. He shouldn't have walked at all, but Alucard feels caged enough. Staying in bed? Makes it worse.]
What made you want to break it in the first place?
[ He goes quiet, at that. He doesn't like where this just went. He stands and collects the jar of poultice - a mixture of clay and something floral-smelling that dries hard and grey. Enid's verdict - and he trusts her, because she's clever - is that medicines are only food if they're taken by the mouth. Poultices and ointments for the burns are Not Food. He places it next to Alucard, and returns to silence.
[The jars at least catch his attention. He can distract himself with them, and he's careful when he examines the first of them to determine it's contents. And so on down the line.]
The opportunity passed. There will be others, I'm sure.
[One of the jars? That's very familiar. He opens it slowly.]
The two who date back to my own ancestor. Are they aware I'm here?
[ He's glad to be away from the FIRE topic, but this is also a bad topic. He doesn't like having his family being so angry with him. It's a bad feeling. ]
...do you want me to take you back? I know it won't mean the agreement isn't broken, but- I can.
[ He was kind of assuming that he'd be able to keep the human, at least for a while. Until he was strong enough to go. But if he doesn't like this and wants to be on fire, then he doesn't like this and wants to be on fire. ]
[Inevitably. Alucard sighs, and for a few moments, ignores Trevor entirely in favor of applying the salve to the soles of his feet. He hisses and twitches at the work, but it doesn't matter. He has to work through it.]
[ He watches. And he wants to reach out, to put a hand on Alucard's back or squeeze at his shoulder or offer some kind of comfort. But he's learned that he flinches away from contact and that that makes it worse. ]
I've never had a husband of my own before. And you're very handsome.
[ ...he's not bathed in at least three weeks and he's somewhat burned. Trevor's taste might be questionable. ]
[ He tilts his head. It's not like he's a stranger to making deals, but this is the wrong way around. Being in a cage is usually the price paid, not something that one has to pay for. ]
I just want you to be here for a little while. With me.
[Alucard's eyes narrow. It sounds far too unlikely in his estimation, but he's in such a bad position. Not only does the faerie control access, Alucard is still recovering. Will be recovering for a time.]
He does touch Alucard this time, hands reaching out before his mind quite catches up with them. They're on Alucard's shoulders, resting there lightly. He catches himself before he pulls Alucard against him, though, and just stays there a little awkwardly. ]
A month. [ He's delighted??? ] If you want for anything-
[A month will see the burn on his hand taken care of entirely. His feet will need longer, but they'll be better off. It's strategic and
and the faerie is touching him, so he goes stiff and so very uncomfortable. The look he gives Trevor is a muted....something. Specifics unclear. But he forces himself through it.]
[ He does draw his hands back, at that, and sets about drawing a bath. There is touching involved, though he tries to keep it to a minimum. He isn't at all certain about the idea of Alucard walking on his burned feet yet, and so he insists on carrying him to and from the bath. The bathing, he allows him to do in private. The water is hot and scented using a bag of dried leaves, which is absolutely more effort than Trevor puts into bathing himself. .
Things continue like that for the next few days. He touches Alucard only when necessary, but when he does he's clearly overjoyed to do so. He brings books on a range of subjects for him to read, nearly all of them difficult to find in uncensored form in the outside world (Enid's recommendations for 'good books' tend to be based on controversy). He hunts for meat and forage and tries to feed Alucard slices of plum and pear and tea made from nettles and late-season rosehips. Today he has been staring at Alucard since he returned, which isn't unusual in itself. But there's an intent to it. Maybe- maybe he could just ask first. Maybe that would make touching okay. ]
May I kiss you?
[ He just asks with no sign of self-consciousness. ]
[The bath is so very sobering. Left alone with his thoughts and injuries, Alucard keys into how very terrifying the situation is and how likely it is he'll be here for a long time. A month, the fae had said, but he was the only ferry between Alucard and the world.
Do you even want to go back, Adrian?
It was a question that weighed on him as the days continued. Countering it were the memories of a woman whose husband Alucard had treated, and who paid him well. She insisted that he remain in the house until her husband recovered, and soon she was pressing against Alucard. Taking him into her bed at whim, smirking and calling him a good boy when he did as instructed. He was a thing, treated as a pet with a few additional skills and very little more.
Even the books contributed to it, although they were also...pretty nice to read, all things considered. Uncensored medical texts and observations of the world. Wonderful.
He's finished eating when Trevor asks. The tray is off of his lap. Yet here it is. Alucard had been waiting for the question.]
[ He stops to think about that. He hadn't quite considered that far ahead. How much would be too much to ask? He likes to think he's been behaving himself nicely. He doesn't insist on sharing the bed, instead sleeping as moths upon the walls and ceiling. He only touches when it's necessary or when he gets excited and forgets, but he's only done the latter a few times. ]
I want to kiss your lips.
[ A pause. It's a lot to ask. He knows it's a lot to ask. ]
Is there anything that you want to- be out there? There's nothing there right now.
[ It doesn't occur to him that that might actually be what Alucard wants, to see past the walls of this place. ]
I can put a garden there. You could do your reading out there.
[ ...he's almost more excited about the possibility of making something new for Alucard than he is about the kiss. He's enjoying playing house like this. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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Alucard understands. It's a jail cell. Just with more comforts than he usually has in such places.
He's still too worn to panic. Part of him? Part of him wonders if maybe he should just stop questioning it and be confined here. It's a nicer place to spend his days, although it isn't clear what the Belmont wants from him yet.]
Most likely not, and yet.
[He's ignoring the pain because he has to move around. He can't be in bed forever.]
How long does time pass here compared to the human world?
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Right now? Probably about the same. Maybe a little slower, but not much. It always goes about the same, if you have something to measure it by.
[ He moves forward, offering his arm to take Alucard’s weight. ]
You’re not going to heal faster here, if that’s what you mean.
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--a few months. The worst of winter will pass at least, and he can make deals until then. Little ones. Ones that let him survive, just as they always have.
Alucard doesn't take the offered arm. He simply sees himself back to bed, carefully lowering himself onto it.]
I see. That's good to know.
[He settles at least, then crosses one leg over the other so he can look at the soles of his feet.]
Why did you break the agreement between our families?
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[ He was going to repeat that he didn't know. But he knows well enough that ignorance is no excuse, and also? It's not the truth. He was listening through that whole confession. Alucard gave his name. He knew. He pulls the reading chair closer to the bed, sitting in it to join in the examination. ]
-I tried to be indirect, and it didn't work. So I decided I didn't care about the agreement.
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[Alucard's feet are no longer red and raw blisters. So much of them now is thick skin trying to heal. Struggling. He shouldn't have walked at all, but Alucard feels caged enough. Staying in bed? Makes it worse.]
What made you want to break it in the first place?
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[ That comes out flat. Look he adores you but that's a stupid question. ]
I thought it was bad that you were on fire.
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[He did. Still does, mostly, although the novelty of being in a place where that's liable to not happen is...nice.]
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[ He goes quiet, at that. He doesn't like where this just went. He stands and collects the jar of poultice - a mixture of clay and something floral-smelling that dries hard and grey. Enid's verdict - and he trusts her, because she's clever - is that medicines are only food if they're taken by the mouth. Poultices and ointments for the burns are Not Food. He places it next to Alucard, and returns to silence.
For a little while. ]
Do you want that? I can- find a fire for you.
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[The jars at least catch his attention. He can distract himself with them, and he's careful when he examines the first of them to determine it's contents. And so on down the line.]
The opportunity passed. There will be others, I'm sure.
[One of the jars? That's very familiar. He opens it slowly.]
The two who date back to my own ancestor. Are they aware I'm here?
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[ He's glad to be away from the FIRE topic, but this is also a bad topic. He doesn't like having his family being so angry with him. It's a bad feeling. ]
...do you want me to take you back? I know it won't mean the agreement isn't broken, but- I can.
[ He was kind of assuming that he'd be able to keep the human, at least for a while. Until he was strong enough to go. But if he doesn't like this and wants to be on fire, then he doesn't like this and wants to be on fire. ]
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[Inevitably. Alucard sighs, and for a few moments, ignores Trevor entirely in favor of applying the salve to the soles of his feet. He hisses and twitches at the work, but it doesn't matter. He has to work through it.]
What do you gain by having me here?
[The ultimate question. What do you want?]
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[ He watches. And he wants to reach out, to put a hand on Alucard's back or squeeze at his shoulder or offer some kind of comfort. But he's learned that he flinches away from contact and that that makes it worse. ]
I've never had a husband of my own before. And you're very handsome.
[ ...he's not bathed in at least three weeks and he's somewhat burned. Trevor's taste might be questionable. ]
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[Trying to pin down the deal is the only thing Alucard can think of for right now. The rest he ignores because it's a lie.
God, he should really bathe, shouldn't he?]
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I just want you to be here for a little while. With me.
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We'll start with a month.
[That'll buy him more time and energy.]
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He does touch Alucard this time, hands reaching out before his mind quite catches up with them. They're on Alucard's shoulders, resting there lightly. He catches himself before he pulls Alucard against him, though, and just stays there a little awkwardly. ]
A month. [ He's delighted??? ] If you want for anything-
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and the faerie is touching him, so he goes stiff and so very uncomfortable. The look he gives Trevor is a muted....something. Specifics unclear. But he forces himself through it.]
I think that right now, I just need to bathe.
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Things continue like that for the next few days. He touches Alucard only when necessary, but when he does he's clearly overjoyed to do so. He brings books on a range of subjects for him to read, nearly all of them difficult to find in uncensored form in the outside world (Enid's recommendations for 'good books' tend to be based on controversy). He hunts for meat and forage and tries to feed Alucard slices of plum and pear and tea made from nettles and late-season rosehips. Today he has been staring at Alucard since he returned, which isn't unusual in itself. But there's an intent to it. Maybe- maybe he could just ask first. Maybe that would make touching okay. ]
May I kiss you?
[ He just asks with no sign of self-consciousness. ]
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Do you even want to go back, Adrian?
It was a question that weighed on him as the days continued. Countering it were the memories of a woman whose husband Alucard had treated, and who paid him well. She insisted that he remain in the house until her husband recovered, and soon she was pressing against Alucard. Taking him into her bed at whim, smirking and calling him a good boy when he did as instructed. He was a thing, treated as a pet with a few additional skills and very little more.
Even the books contributed to it, although they were also...pretty nice to read, all things considered. Uncensored medical texts and observations of the world. Wonderful.
He's finished eating when Trevor asks. The tray is off of his lap. Yet here it is. Alucard had been waiting for the question.]
What kind of a kiss?
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I want to kiss your lips.
[ A pause. It's a lot to ask. He knows it's a lot to ask. ]
But only a little. I promise.
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[It's said softly. With more confidence than Alucard really has.]
Could I go outside afterwards?
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[ Important clarification there. He's excited about this. So excited, and it shows. ]
I'd need to carry you. But I can put you down, once you're there. [ Please don't put too much weight on your poor feet again, not-vampire. ]
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[Alucard knows better than to go back into the real world right now. But he's so sick of this room.]
And I understand. That's fair.
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Is there anything that you want to- be out there? There's nothing there right now.
[ It doesn't occur to him that that might actually be what Alucard wants, to see past the walls of this place. ]
I can put a garden there. You could do your reading out there.
[ ...he's almost more excited about the possibility of making something new for Alucard than he is about the kiss. He's enjoying playing house like this. ]
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[This place can't exist as an island in a sea of nothingness. He is genuinely curious, and...
...that's worth the price of a kiss.]
Please.
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