[closed] Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare

[cryptsleeper]

Character(s): Trevor+Alucard
Status: Closed
Location(s): Mountains outside of Krimnos at a certain falling apart home
Date(s) 22 March - End of the month
About: Clearing out the castle and generally trying to make it home again
Warnings: Probably allusions to patricide; finding a dead body; others to be added



Note: Castle is not representative of Usir canon castle, just roll with me on this

[They had been here once, in the dead of winter, all bundled up and trudging through the snows to simply see what had become of a home whose three spires pierced through the forest's treeline. What remained was a shell of the home built by Alucard's father, still imposing and with a single spire remaining, but precious little else. Within the halls were destroyed pieces of furniture, looted rooms, and broken glass, along with signs that it had been a place of shelter for travelers over the years.

It could be salvaged though, with enough time and money. That had been clear, and now with the matter of Einjar completed, time and money was an option. Not much, but enough. Enough for there to be firewood in the kitchen, enough daylight to spend clearing out room after room, enough to buy stones to secure unstable things and ensure a delivery. Most importantly: enough to buy new locks, making it clear that the ruin is no longer deserted.

The work is slow. Careful. Limited, but that was expected.]

Comments

[cryptsleeper]

[It's been a blessing that Trevor's here at all, for all that Alucard has been outraged at either one of them being pulled from well earned rest. Having him go through the most personal of things, it's...it makes everything seem less emotional than it is. There's focus. He'd do the same for Trevor if asked.

Alucard scowls at the comment, because of course he does. It's a part of this too, the way they interact when Alucard isn't near sleep and using Trevor as a bed. (That's...that's also emotionally charged, but for very different reasons.]

As if I didn't have that discussion with my mother in the most highly scientific way possible. [Because he sure did.]

I'll explain. Watch my shadow for a moment.

[miraclewhip]

I'm guessing it took four days and every other word was about seven syllables.

[ But he does look at the shadow, watching carefully. ]

You going to make butterfly shapes with your hands or something?

[cryptsleeper]

Don't be rude.

[He bristles, but only a little. What tension threatened to rise in his shoulders sloughs off, only for it to return in full force and then some a moment later. It happens the first few seconds Alucard taps into every power available to him as a dhampir, and now is no exception.

At first, the shadow grows longer. A trick of the firelight, except it doesn't flicker and move about. The length increases, and then the shadow is no longer just Alucard's head and shape of his torso. It is a thing unto itself, and it moves along the kitchen walls with all of the dhampir's normal movement.

And the dhampir isn't moving at all.]

[miraclewhip]

What the shit.

[ Trevor is calm enough, though Dog's hissing suddenly increases in volume as he expresses his displeasure first with his own hindquarters and then with the rest of the room. Mumbling something about 'fucking dog, what's your problem', Trevor reaches out to try to touch the shadow, seeing if he can pin it in place with a hand. ]

[cryptsleeper]

[The shadow does dodge. It weaves around Trevor, before Alucard recalls the shadow back to himself entirely. The hissing from Dog is a little too much to bear right now.]

I don't know. I've never been able to do this before.

[Alucard turns so he can face Trevor, the concern clear on his face.]

And it doesn't feel related to any...recent events either.

[miraclewhip]

I've heard of vampir that could do similar but- I didn't think that was just something that happened. I thought it was a learned skill.

[ Maybe if he'd finished his training he'd be more use here. As it is, he just has to grasp at what he was able to learn before the executions. He rubs at his bad eye in thought, shifting the eyepatch around as he does (he's willing to take it off in the castle these days but even here he still wears it most of the time). ]

So it just moves around on its own?

[cryptsleeper]

Hm. If that was recorded among you and yours, then that's probably a natural skill coming to light.

[Alucard fights the urge to reach up and take that damn eyepatch off himself. It's pointless to have it on in the house (home) as far as he's concerned. Who else is going to see it? But those words don't leave the vampire's lips, and he settles for glaring at it.]

No. I have to direct it, and it takes an immense amount of concentration. What's more important is that I can get a sense of what's around me when I do.

[miraclewhip]

[ Sir this is his emotional support eyepatch. ]

If Dracula was capable of it, being here again might- residual magic bullshit. It's a guess, but it's all I have. You have my blessing to check the old Belmont place for anything that might tell you more, but fuck knows if there's anything still there.

[ Dog is, at least, finally calming down and hissing more quietly at his bed before dozing off again. ]

[cryptsleeper]

I honestly can't recall if he did this or not. He might've been able to and I never saw.

[But that does brush against something else. Alucard goes very still, even as Ellis trots herself over and curls up next to Dog's box.]

Would...you want to go and see what remains of it?

[miraclewhip]

Not particularly.

[ There's no emotion in it, not really. ]

I wanted it to be a shelter, not a monument. If there's still anything there, then it's not doing its fucking job. If there isn't, then it's hardly mine anymore.

[cryptsleeper]

Then I'll leave it be.

[It's a simple conclusion. Alucard knows that if he goes, he'll feel compelled to tell Trevor the state of it. If it stands. What remains.]

You haven't come across anything in cleaning the rooms out that might have triggered this, have you?

[miraclewhip]

Nothing out of the ordinary, from what I've been able to tell. Almost like a normal fucking house. Except big, and abandoned.

[ Because it was a normal fucking house, once. It's hard to remember that when he's only ever known Dracula as the Belmonts knew him. ]

[cryptsleeper]

Likely because all the things that made it extraordinary are lost to time.

[His eyes go to the second attempt he's made at a book case. It is next to Dog's bed for now, and there's just two things on the set of four shelves: Alucard's notebook, and a second journal of books he remembers being in the house once. The rest of the shelves are given over to personal items and equipment, along with the few items Alucard found in the remaining spire that were clearly once his mother's. It feels like a mockery of what the house once held. It feels like the first step towards making it home again.

It's a stupid, impulsive thing that happens next. Trevor's close, and Alucard's hand just reaches out to try and take Trevor's.]

[miraclewhip]

[ Alucard's hand is small, and it doesn't really fit comfortably in his. Except that it is comfortable, no matter how awkward it is. His shoulders fall, whatever he was going to say is gone. He lets out a long breath. ]

Shit, I live someplace.

[ It's not the first time he's said it in the last few days, but there's always a tone of wonder to it. Relief. ]

[cryptsleeper]

[Alucard's not paying attention to awkward. He's thinking about the warm weight of it, and how it right it feels to be standing awkwardly like this when Trevor states the obvious with such relief in his voice.]

You do.

[He turns his head from the fire to Trevor, and there's a thin smile on his face.]

I regret that your Dog has a nicer bed than you do though.

[miraclewhip]

It's the way of things. Even if he's an ungrateful shit about it.

[ Speaking of, he squeezes Alucard's hand before moving over to his collection of rugs and old curtains by the fire. It's plenty nice. Perfect. Warm and safe and comfortable. ]

[cryptsleeper]

He looks content enough about it now.

[Dog has his charm points. They're usually when he's asleep, and being curled up in a box with a fluffy blanket is absolutely a charm point.

Ellis has curled up in the box besides Dog. She's happy where she is, warm and safe.]

They both do.

[Alucard makes sure he's out of the way as Trevor gets the bedding out for the night. That's something else he's been thinking about, proper beds.]

Are there any rooms with fireplaces that look like they could be converted into a more permanent bedroom space?

[miraclewhip]

Mn. [ He lays out his bedding, lying down in it as he thinks. ]

There's a- I think it was a reading room, upstairs. Relatively clear, windows intact, big fireplace. You could use that.

[ You. As in Alucard could. It doesn't occur to him that his own good sleep spot might be being moved to someplace else. Far more likely that Alucard just wants a normal people bed again. He can hardly blame him. Human-sized types tend to get picky about these things, don't they? ]

[cryptsleeper]

Will you fit through the door?

[Alucard knows the room. First floor, and it was one of the grander rooms, which meant a taller, more imposing door frame. A large-ish fireplace too, albeit not quite a competitor to the one in the kitchen. It'll fit them both easily enough, but there's little point in converting it if Trevor's struggling to go in and out.]