#thank you annette!! <3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[silna-pdf]

a willsker idea for you: birkin handing baby sherry off to wesker, and wesker holding her for the very first time. he's never held a life this fragile before

I couldn’t capture the poignant moment ths truly would’ve been but like imagine it’s there

[vultures-and-scavengers]

For the ask game, ring, trident emblem and bagel? For your favourite oc :) (~Dina)

I'm going to answer for Annette Trevelyan, who is undeniably My Girl the last few months <3 Thank you so much for the ask!

RING — does your OC have any piercings? do they want any (more) piercings?

She does not have any-- not in Thedas, at least. I think in a modern AU she would have ear piercings, but no more than that. She's not super willing to go outside whats acceptable mainstream, and I could at most see her having a belly piercing or nose piercing in a modern AU, but as a rebellion thing, and likely short-lived.

TRIDENT EMBLEM — can your oc swim? do they enjoy swimming?

She can swim, but she gets almost drowned by a terror demon in a mission to a swamp in early game, and develops a strong phobia of the water. She won't go near large bodies of water, especially still and murky water. Rivers are slightly more tolerable, but she still hates them.

Initially, there was actually a few times where like... not even bubble baths were cool with her. Like she needed to be able to see through whatever water she was in, or she froze up and panicked, badly.

While this is a cover-up for DAI not letting your character swim or go in any water, it's a fun quirk given one of the cutscenes in her chosen romance involves going to a lake. I like to imagine that the little detail that she's terrified of the water was forgotten because her partner was so stressed trying to work out the actual details of the trip to the region and it just lost in the chaos, but I also like to think it leads into her trying to face her terror of water by at least wading into the shallows (with a death grip on his hand).

She doesn't trust very easily, and so its a big character moment for her to a) ask for help and b) trust someone enough to help her in her vulnerability.

BAGEL — what does your oc's typical breakfast look like? do they usually eat breakfast?

Pastries. She's wealthy, and of the nobility, so when she's in her own estate, she has a whole selection of pastries and other breakfast foods available, but if she doesn't have access to that, she's fine with a cup of tea and then moving on for the day.

[zorostitties]

Aurora; 5 (m)

⤕ Your existence had been an endless night, where shadows whispered long forgotten secrets. Trapped in a golden cage, your fragile mind and shattered memories were chains that kept you from dreaming of freedom. Then, he appeared with the first light of dawn, like a gentle sun warming your cold skin. In his gaze, the promise of a new beginning; in his presence, the sunrise your soul had longed for.

In which Alucard saves you from Erzsebet.

pairing: alucard (castlevania) x (f) reader

genre: angst, romance, slow burn, eventual smut

warnings: violence/blood, explicit language, mental health issues, grief, physical abuse.

rating: 18+

word count: 7k

A/N: Hello people!!! I present you the longest chapter up until now. I don't even know how it got to this word count but I had a lot of fun writing it anyway!! OH MY GOD THAT'S A LOT OF NOTES Y'ALL 😭😭😭 THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! This fic is receiving so much love both here and on AO3. I'm getting emotional 🥹🥹 Anyways!! Enjoy <3

⤕  Masterlist  ⤕ Also on AO3 ⤕ Playlist

Richter’s incessant talking was starting to piss Annette off.

She wasn’t going to tell him, obviously – not because she didn’t have the courage to do it. It was because she knew the reason for her annoyance wasn’t exactly Richter’s voice, nor the voices of the people around her.

It was the spirits’ voices.

They’d been… popping up incessantly ever since that moment at the clearing. Annette was used to seeing spirits to a certain degree; her connection to the other side was part of her powers, part of who she was, after all. She learned to not be afraid of them. She learned to accept her ancestors, to pay attention to their whispers and the messages they carried.

And yet… they’ve never been so restless like that.

Nor so noisy.

And certainly not so clear.

Back in Saint-Domingue, when Annette started to explore her powers, she’d often feel… presences. They caused goosebumps, whispered words in her mind. Sometimes, she’d have strange dreams that carried hidden meanings. When those occurrences became too frequent to be brushed off anymore, Annette opened up to Cécile. Her mentor then explained that it was not only normal, but a privilege; as her abilities blossomed, her ancestors would get closer to her – offering advice, warnings, and even reprimands when necessary.

With time, she started to see figures with the corner of her eyes. Silhouettes in the dark. They never scared her. She knew they were part of her family – just a glimpse of her large family tree, generations of spirits that went all the way to the other side of the ocean, staying beside her even after death… supporting her in her fight for freedom.

Well.

They were starting to scare her now.

Why did they look so angry? Why did they become so clear out of sudden? These weren’t just silhouettes anymore, she could see them as easily as Richter beside her. In fact, some looked so real that they could pass as any other living person; the only indicative that they didn’t belong to this world were the faint transparency of their bodies and the soft glow around them.

And worst of it all – she could not understand a word of what they were saying. Their whispers were unintelligible.

If these really were her ancestors trying to bring a message, why couldn’t they be clear about it?

...Were they even her ancestors? Were they even real? What if she got trapped in an enemy spell, causing her to see illusions?

Annette wanted to scream. She wanted to run. She wanted to they them to shut up and leave her alone. Hell – she was all worried about Ruby earlier that day, as the girl seemed so distressed to be in a crowded city, and yet Annette herself wasn’t feeling much better than her at all.

The sensory overload was so bad that she didn’t see a prominent rock on the pavement and tripped on it, almost falling face down in the middle of the street.

Richter caught her in time.

His hand was quick to take her arm in a gentle, yet firm grip. His blue eyes were even rounder than usual. “Oh! Are you okay?”

The action brought Annette back to reality – and also brought back that feeling she was trying hard to ignore.

The girl straightened her position, stepping away from him rapidly. It was stupid how she already felt her cheeks heat up with such a simple touch of his… but it was becoming a frequent occurrence ever since she accidentally held his hand at the clearing, creating a bit of an… awkward situation for them both.

One more embarrassing thing these spirits made her do.

“Yes, thank you,” she brushed it off the best she could before she continued to walk.

If Richter noticed her reaction, he didn’t let it show. The Belmont boy let a tired sight. “I didn’t expect Paris would be this big,” he muttered tiredly. “I thought when he got here, we were practically at our destination. But… we’ve been walking for hours already.”

Annette had to agree. They’d been walking all morning and this Louvre palace was yet to reveal itself. She even wondered if Alucard was sure of where they were going; after all, she was aware that other palaces existed in Paris. What if Louvre wasn’t the correct one?

“You’re not familiar with Paris? I thought you’d been here before,” she asked.

“I’ve only been here once, and I didn’t stay for long,” Richter explained. “I was just taking care of Maria, to be honest. Not exactly safe to let a teenage girl roam a big city alone, you know, and especially not when she’s reaching out for revolutionaries. Maria gets in trouble pretty easily.”

He let a light chuckle, yet his eyes were saddened at the mention of Maria – and it tightened Annette’s heart just a bit. She knew he was carrying a lot of baggage with him this entire mission. The fight with Maria, Tera’s “death”, how he felt he didn’t help her and had to flee… and now the fact that he handed their destination to that damn vampire. The worst part – Alucard got mad at him.

As if she was reading his mind, Richter lifted his eyes and looked at the white-haired vampire’s back, walking many steps ahead of them with Ruby by his side. To be fair, after that moment at the forest, Alucard wasn’t being mean or cold to Richter (well, not colder than he already was, at least). It was very clear in Annette’s eyes how his anger wore off as hours went by. But Annette also knew that this didn’t ease Richter’s regret.

Annette lowered her voice, hoping Alucard wouldn’t hear her.

“You know,” she started quietly. Her tone caught Richter’s attention. “I don’t think he was that angry at you. I think he was angrier at himself for letting Ruby get hurt.”

Richter blinked. He also thought she was reading his mind. He pressed his lips together, lowering his head again.

“And he decided to lash out on me.”

“Well… it’s not like you didn’t give him a reason to.”

Richter pouted. “Aw, come on. I thought you were trying to cheer me up.”

Annette couldn’t help but giggle. “I’m sorry. But what I mean is… don’t dwell on it. Yes, what you did was silly, but to keep thinking about won’t help you.”

The Belmont boy went silent for a few moments. “Ruby told me the same thing.” He lifted his gaze, now looking at the young woman. “Hey, Annette… what do you think of her?”

Instinctively, she looked at Ruby’s back as well.

From the moment she laid eyes on Ruby, she felt immediate empathy. Her constant hesitant, frightened state… it was painfully familiar. Annette still remembered very well the weeks that followed her escape from the plantation. The nightmares, the shivers, the fear of going out, the paranoia. It took a lot for her to realize that she was safe, that no one would ever hurt her anymore. It took even longer for her to learn how to voice her opinions, to understand that she mattered to the people around her, and they mattered for her, too.

And that’s precisely what helped Annette overcome her struggles. She had something to fight for. A cause she would never give up on. Genuine friends around her. Warriors in arms, family in hearts.

She had Edouard.

The mere mention of his name in her mind was enough to make her want to cry again.

Edouard was who helped her during her darkest times. He was still the reason why she was fighting, why she crossed the ocean, why she would do anything in her power to defeat Sekhmet.

And that was precisely what made Ruby’s situation difficult. She… didn’t have a family – not one she remembered, at least. She didn’t have a past, something to hold onto. Someone that would give her motivation to keep fighting until the end of her forces, until the last drop of sweat. With such an amount of trauma (although Annette didn’t know exactly what she went through in Erzsebet’s hands, it certainly wasn’t easy), it is important to have a reason to stay alive.

Or someone.

Annette’s deceased mother was her primary reason. Then Edouard, Cécile, the Maroons… until she realized that by fighting for them, she was fighting for herself, too.

And… perhaps… perhaps she had a new reason to keep fighting now. A reason she met recently, but that made her feel things that she never felt before. A… sweet, funny, a little silly reason – but strong and determined nevertheless.

“I think she’s being honest,” Annette finally answered Richter’s question. “And… I don’t like to feel sorry for people, but I feel sorry for her. I hope she finds her reason soon.”

Richter frowned, clearly not understanding what she meant by “her reason”, but Annette didn’t feel like elaborating on that.

“The only thing I’m suspicious of is this… healing thing of hers,” Richter said in a quiet tone. “I don’t think anyone can acquire this in a good way.”

Annette had to agree with that. Alucard might be right in his words – maybe the Ruby from the past, the real Ruby, was not the innocent person she seemed to be…

A harsh whisper in her right ear made Annette gasp.

Oh no. Not again. They had stopped for some moments, but then started whispering again. That was more of a hiss, in fact – rushed, anxious, trying to catch her attention.

The spirits trembled. Annette noticed that the crowd around her – the crowd of real people – seemed to be walking in the same direction; they wore apprehensive, even angry expressions on their faces. They were almost as hectic as the spirits.

“Is Paris always like this? I can feel the tension,” Annette muttered more to herself than to Richter. She looked around; there were spirits behind them, to the sides, in front–

Wait, in front–

Her eyes passed rapidly by Alucard and Ruby. They had stopped walking for some reason, but that’s not what caught her attention.

She… she saw a strange glow in Ruby.

It didn’t surround her body like it did with the spirits. It was a… point. Faint, eerie; the tiny point glowed on the left side of her back, almost transparent… like the flame of a candle.

It glowed in the same place as her heart.

Annette tightened her eyes. What was that? Did anyone put a spell on her? Was an enemy nearby? No one else had a glow like that – no one alive, at least. She was about to reach for Ruby’s arm, scared for her safety–

But then, the sound of drums echoed through the streets.

The spirits vanished – just as the strange flame in Ruby’s heart.

Annette blinked repeatedly. Did she… see things?

Alucard looked behind his back to the two of them, now that they had reached their position.

“Something’s about to happen,” he said eerily.

The crowd kept walking. Now, Annette could see that there was a great square ahead of them. It couldn’t be a good thing; she felt a strange sensation in her gut, an apprehension that she could not understand.

She wanted to ask if Ruby was alright – if she felt anything – but decided that was not the time. The group followed the rest of the crowd.

That left a question mark in the back of Annette’s mind. What was that thing she saw in Ruby’s heart?

But then, the King of France was executed, Annette saw the three headed spirit that almost made her have a heart attack – and nothing else mattered after that.

You felt sorry for him.

Of course – you heard the conversation between Richter, Annette and Alucard. They understood the situation much better than you and even had divergent opinions. He wasn’t a particularly bad King, Richter said, while Annette stated that no one can reign innocently. On your understandings, both of them were right to some degree.

And yet, when “Louis The Last” stepped on the platform and knelt in front of the guillotine, you didn’t see the King. You saw a frightened man in the face of death.

Watching normal humans die wasn’t easy; you never got used to it. It was always horrible whenever you’d see one of Erzsebet’s preys let their dying breath, their last gag. It was almost as if you could see their lives slipping away, their bodies becoming empty. And yet, when you realized that they’d finally stopped moving, you felt… relief for them. Because at least, they weren’t in pain anymore. Whenever you saw a human victim be dragged into the hall, you’d silently hope for a quick death upon them. Things didn’t always go that way. You hated when they didn’t.

The square was uncomfortably crowded, but Alucard was right – you were getting used to it, although you were still hoping to leave that place as soon as possible. Angry whispers, shouts, loud discussions... they were energetic.

The conversation of a particular couple close to you caught your attention.

“I don’t think I can look at it,” the woman said with a visible scowl of disgust. The man, still facing the platform, made her hide her face on the curve of his neck.

“It’s okay, darling. You don’t have to.”

You frowned.

She was wrong. He was wrong.

You shouldn’t look away when a man is about to die. It’s dishonorable.

You watched in solemn silence when the sharp blade of the guillotine went down on the man’s neck, beheading him. Blood splashed on the platform. The head rolled one, two, three, four times. A perpetually horrified expression. The crowd cheered in satisfied anger. They felt avenged.

Only then did you close your eyes for a moment. A quick death is a luxury not many have, you thought.

“Annette? Are you alright?”

You opened your eyes and turned around to see Richter calling the girl in yellow. Annette had her back facing you, yet you could see her heavy breathing, which immediately sparked some worry. Was she feeling unwell?

“...Yes,” Annette’s voice almost disappeared within the crowd’s roar. She sounded hesitant and scared. It was the first time she looked even remotely scared.

Alucard was quietly watching her, too, from over his shoulder. Then, he sent you a meaningful glance, pointing with his head a way out of the crowd. He didn’t wait for any of you to follow him.

“Let’s go,” you said, calling Richter and Annette’s attention. She looked more than happy to leave the place, while Richter kept sending her worried glances.

There was no time to ask if she was okay or not. The crowd seemed to be getting even more heated. They shouted, raised their fists in the air, clapped their hands – and it only got worse when one of the guards took the deceased King’s head and put it on a spike, lifting it up for the audience. The crowd started to push each other to try to get a closer look.

That was when the confusion started.

You saw people falling. Children crying. Guards shouting, trying to get control of the situation with no avail. You were pushed, almost smashed in the middle of hundreds of bodies, to a point were your feet were merely following the flow of the crowd, having no control of where you were going.

“There are ladies here, you savage animals!” One woman groaned.

“Stop pushing!” Someone else said.

“Rot in hell, Louis!”

“I want to see the head!”

“Ouch- my foot!”

“Vive la Révolution!”

You desperately tried to make your way out – and there was no way out without pushing people, which only made the situation worse. You looked around, trying to see Richter or Annette; the Belmont boy was quite tall, so it was easy to spot him many rows of people away from you, also being smashed. He sent you a worried gaze and tried to yell something, but you couldn’t hear anything over the incessant shouting. You tried to approach him, but that was like trying to swim against the flow of a river.

Richter tried to shout something again. He managed to lift his hand and point at something to your right side. You supposed he was trying to show you a way out of the crowd.

You turned your head in that direction in time to see Alucard approaching with a deeply annoyed frown.

He caught you by the arm and pressed your body on his, keeping a firm arm around you while the other quite unceremoniously pushed people out of the way. He didn’t let himself be carried by the flow, keeping a solid and consistent pace. Alucard was like a rock in the middle of these people, literally. No one could push him even if they tried (and they tried). He didn’t lose balance.

He was visibly pissed.

And even so, the thing your brain most noticed was that he… had a good smell.

It wasn’t exactly your fault; Alucard was pressing you against his chest after all. And… you tried to remember that method – if you could call it that – that Alucard himself taught you a few hours ago. When your mind was distressed, about to spiral, too overwhelmed… focus on a single thing, a simple thing, to try and muffle everything else.

So you focused on his smell.

It was… sweet. Like spices. It even reminded you a bit of cocoa. And refreshing, maybe a bit citric, like orange.

It… reminded you a bit of the natural smell a baby has after taking a bath.

Vampires have a very specific smell you learned to hate over time. It’s nauseously sweet, like burnt sugar. Add this to unnecessary puffs of perfume – Erzsebet loved floral fragrances – and their absolutely horrible breath that no amount of chewing peppermint could mask.

You shouldn’t be surprised that even though Alucard was half-vampire, he was still starkly different than all the others you’d met, even in the tiniest details. But it surprised you anyway.

Finally, he managed to push his way out of the crowd into a nearby, emptier street, releasing his grip around you. You stepped aside, cleaning the sweat on your forehead with the back of your hand.

“That was… intense,” you managed to speak breathlessly, looking back at the still growing mess. “Thank you.”

Alucard sighed heavily. “We should’ve left sooner,” he muttered dryly, more to himself than to you. “I should’ve figured a commotion like this would happen.” He looked at the crowd for a few more moments before his eyes fell on your figure, the frown on his forehead untying. “How are you feeling?”

You widened your eyes slightly. Sure, he was just being thoughtful, but you figured he was asking that after your… history of panics involving crowds (or even smaller things).

“Oh! I’m totally fine. Thank you,” you tried to sound cheerful. Alucard nodded.

It seemed that all you could tell him was thank you over and over again – and it was starting to annoy you. Not only because a tiny (maybe not so tiny) part of you wanted to have more meaningful conversations with him like the one earlier that day, but because you didn’t want to worry anyone anymore. You wanted to be more useful to the group. But how could you be useful if the group consisted of excellent fighters, experts in magic, and you were just an “ordinary” human? Your healing was only useful to yourself, not to them.

Alucard looked back at the crowd and raised his arm. Following his gaze, you saw Richter and Annette pop out of the mass of people, similarly breathless as you. This at least brought you some comfort. Alucard was the only one to show no sign of tiredness.

The Belmont boy rested his hands over his knees, breathing heavily, when they reached your position. “...I hope that was the only beheading scheduled for today,” he joked tiredly.

Annette didn’t chuckle this time. Worry still clouded her eyes. “Are we close now, Alucard?”

The man nodded. “Only a few blocks away from here. Let’s go.”

He kept marching ahead, not giving any of you a chance to recover.

The Louvre was scarily big.

Bigger than the chateau, bigger than Erzsebet’s palace, bigger than… well, any building you’d ever seen.

The gigantic front garden of the palace was eerily empty, with only a few people walking here and there; most of the population was concentrated on the central square to watch the execution of the King, which would grant you some advantage (and tranquility) to look for Sekhmet’s mummy. You approached the palace a little after the midday sun, its light reflecting on the decorative pools of the garden, the wind softly swaying the trees.

“The monarchies of Europe will be horrified. Already, some of them are waging war on France. They’ll be joined by the rest. The Vampire Messiah plans to lead them, commander and chief of the counterrevolution,” Alucard explained while you walked.

Oh. And just like that, everything made sense. Erzsebet’s reason to be on France, their talks about “crushing a revolution”… Indeed, if she succeeded, she’d be considered the Queen she always aimed to be. One that could unite an entire continent regardless of public opinion, as she sided with the oligarchies which possessed the most power. Vampire oligarchies.

“And just this street rabble to resist her,” Richter said somberly. “Who won’t stand a chance, will they?”

“No.”

A shiver ran down your spine. You didn’t have enough information to understand if the current kings and queens were bad to their people. Judging by the execution witnessed earlier and the reaction it caused… you could assume they weren’t doing a great job. To have a sadistic vampire sitting on a throne, ruling over millions of innocent lives… it would be even worse. Erszebet saw humans as less than insects, barely livestock, and her court thought the same. Soon, she’d be ruling over an empire of corpses.

You looked over your shoulder to Richter and Annette, who had suddenly stopped walking and were a few steps away. They were being too quiet for you to hear them. Richter still looked worried, while Annette seemed distressed.

You looked ahead again. “There’s something wrong with Annette,” you said quietly. Alucard hummed.

“I noticed.” He also kept the quiet tone. “However, we can’t help her if she doesn’t say what’s the problem.”

Alucard was already preventing you from getting stressed. You nodded. “...I hope it’s nothing serious.”

Finally, you reached the doors of the palace. Two guards protected the entrance. After a quick chat, they let you in. Apparently, the palace was public domain now, so it didn’t take a lot of convincing.

Opposing to its empty exterior, the large halls of the Louvre were filled with people – men and women, working on organization and cleaning. All of them wore some sort of hat in the colors of the French flag; members of the Revolution.

“A single family lived here?” you muttered to yourself, letting your gaze wander through the place. The high vaulted ceilings, the tall windows, red columns, golden arabesques, the glass skylights; it was bathed in natural lighting. Not to mention the many pieces of art – statues, paintings, some of the frames towering three times bigger than a person; the intricate carpets, the chandeliers… with each corner you turned (the palace seemed to be an endless labyrinth) you grew more and more speechless.

“No, the royal family lived somewhere else. It was still their property, though,” Richter explained. “And to think the people were dying of hunger and plague while the royal family had all this,” he said bitterly. “It really makes you agree with the revolutionaries.”

You had to admit that it was hard to focus on the task at hand being surrounded by so much art. Erzsebet’s palace was beautiful, of course, but devoid of any personality. It was… beauty for the sake of beauty, mostly. But at the Louvre, you saw sculptures and paintings that looked genuinely ancient; hundreds of years of history, the works of multiple hands, stories being told. It definitely should not be at the hands of a few people only.

A certain half opened door caught your eye. There seemed to be a big statue there that glowed faintly under the sunlight. You narrowed your eyes, trying to see better…

“Oh! Leonardo!”

Alucard’s voice completely caught your attention.

You snapped your head at him. The nonchalance in his expression was completely gone, being replaced by… longing?

He turned to you three with a bit of excitement he hadn’t shown up until that moment. “It’s a painting by Leonardo da Vinci, of a woman he actually couldn’t abide. Or so he told me,” he explained, pointing with his head towards a particular frame. A woman of straight brown hair and dark clothing posed in the painting with a vague expression, her arms crossed over her lap. Alucard closed his eyes for a moment, chuckling, and opened a tender smile. Then, he side eyed you as if telling a secret: “I never really thought it was one of his best.”

Then, he kept on walking as if nothing happened.

...You were pretty sure that you, Richter and Annette were all blushing at that moment.

Alucard never sounded so excited before. Never so lighthearted. And he looked… cute? Adorable, in fact. It made him look very young.

...You’d like to know this side of him a little bit better.

“Is there any order to this? Or do you just… put things anywhere?” Alucard asked one of the men in uniform.

“We’re looking for Ancient Egyptian,” Richter added.

The man pointed ahead. “Go straight, then turn to your left at the end of the corridor. First door.”

You followed his directions after Richter muttered a thank you. Alucard picked up his pace and all of you followed. Now that you had some guidance, it seemed that apprehension weighed over the atmosphere. The room mentioned by the man was empty – if you could call that a room, that is, as it was bigger than some houses. A gallery, in fact.

Wooden crates of different sizes were scattered here and there. Some sculptures were protected by boxes made of glass. Sunlight embraced the entire room through the tall windows. At the far end of the gallery, there were four columns that seemed to imitate palm trees; they had colorful paintings and ancient writings around them.

A shiver ran down your spine. A memory from not long ago – or was it long ago? – was brought forward in your mind. An obelisk with writings similar to those in the columns… the same art styles, the same periods. It would be brought whenever Erzsebet summoned an eclipse… or when Erzsebet summoned Sekhmet. The vampire’s very appearance would change, taking an animalistic look similar to a lioness. Whenever Erzsebet did that, you’d be genuinely frightened, even more than usual. That wasn’t simply the strength of a vampire anymore. It was much more ancient, much stronger, a much denser type of magic… the type that shouldn’t be messed with thoughtlessly, the type that demanded respect upon its use. Erzsebet had no respect for it. Maybe that’s why it was always so horrendous to witness.

“Hm… so we’re looking for a corpse…” Richter muttered, looking around.

“It’s here. I’m sure of it,” Alucard said as he inspected one of the wooden crates.

You thought of searching for it too, but you didn’t want to touch anything. You couldn’t tell exactly why. Was it because of your bad memories associated with anything Egyptian? Or was it something else?

“Show me.”

The three of you turned to Annette at the same time.

“What?” Richter asked.

The girl had an apprehensive expression as she stared at… nothing in particular. She visibly hesitated before speaking.

“There are spirits here. Many spirits,” she confessed quietly. You widened your eyes. Richter instinctively looked around. “They’ve been following us. Following me.” She inhaled, as if building up courage. “Show me.”

You looked around as well and saw, well… nothing. But Annette was following something with her gaze with much attention. Richter approached her.

“Why didn’t you tell us?”

“Because I don’t know what they want,” for the first time, Annette showed a glimpse of her real distress over the situation. That’s what had been bothering her since the execution… she was sweating. “Or if they’re real.”

“Do they speak to you?” Alucard asked in a serious tone.

“Yes, but I… can’t understand what they’re whispering,” she narrowed her eyes. “Sometimes they seem angry. There are spirits here now who just seem lost.” She looked at Richter. Annette seemed even more fragile than when you talked to her at the forest, which took you by surprise. “...Or is it me that’s lost?”

Richter pressed his lips together, not taking his eyes off her for a second. He rested a reassuring hand on her back, not saying a word – and it seemed enough to calm her down, even if just a bit.

It even felt that you were interrupting something for a second. And yet, you couldn’t look away. They… seemed to share something very intimate. Very beautiful.

Your chest tightened.

“What’s happening with them now?” Alucard asked quietly, looking around. “Could they be trying to tell you something?”

Annette looked ahead and went silent for some seconds. Then, she pointed in the direction she was looking.

“There.”

The group approached a particular wooden crate sitting at the very end of the gallery, near the columns. Alucard knelt down in front of it and lifted its lid.

And there it was.

A mummy, with its arms crossed over their chest, completely bandaged in red linen, laying over a bed of straw. It had the silhouette of a woman.

“It stinks,” Richter complained, pinching his nose.

Annette narrowed her eyes. “It’s her. It’s Sekhmet,” she confirmed with certainty.

Alucard got up again. All of you watched the mummy for some seconds; it seemed you shared the weight of responsibility that thing represented.

“So, what do we do now?” Richter spoke up first, scratching the back of his head. “I could burn it, or we could just… hack it to pieces and scatter it to the winds.”

“What you do now is give her to me.”

In that moment – time was frozen.

Air left your lungs. Your eyes widened. Every nerve tensed up. Violent goosebumps roamed your entire body.

You turned around. You didn’t want to. You didn’t want to face the owner of that voice. You wanted to believe it was just your mind playing tricks, that there was nothing actually happening. Because there was no way it was her.

Drolta is dead, Alucard said. He confirmed it. He said he was sure.

But you turned around anyway – and what you saw made your heart drop.

That thing couldn’t be Drolta. There was no way. It had a female body, its leathery skin a mix of black and greyish pink. Instead of feet, it had hooves that made it tower over any human. Its wings were leathery as well, similar to a bat’s; its claws seemed to be made of iron, just like the tip of its long tail. Twisted horns sat at the top of its head.

The thing focused its eyes on you and opened a cruel smile.

No.

No no no no no no no.

That thing couldn’t be Drolta. No, there was no way. But you stared back at her, you scanned her facial features, and these were the same eyes. Most of her original form was gone – it had little resemblance to the attractive woman she once was – but the eyes. The cruelty in those eyes. They remained the same.

It was Drolta.

“Yes, Alucard. You killed me,” she said in the same sultry voice you were so disgustingly used to. “And you stole something very precious from me, too.” Her gaze locked on you again. Her smirk turned to an evil grin. “You little runaway rat… it’s time to return home.”

She was twirling something around her pointer finger. The thing she twirled… it gleamed under the sunlight.

You gasped.

It was the ruby necklace.

You had time to see her extend her great wings, ready to launch. A part of your brain registered that she was accompanied by three other winged creatures, but they seemed blurred. All you could do was stare at her. You couldn’t breathe. You couldn’t move. You couldn’t do anything.

She attacked.

Alucard jumped at the same time, his body enveloped by the familiar red glow. They clashed mid-air.

And then, Richter’s back blocked your vision.

“Stay behind me!” He yelled, snapping his whip in the air, as the three other creatures launched together.

Annette threw one of her newly created blades in the air as if it was a boomerang to no avail, as it didn’t hit any of the creatures. One of them – it was red, its head was what looked like the skull of a wolf – spat a ball of pure fire in your direction. Seeing there would be no time to grab you, Richter pushed you out of the way roughly, sending you a few meters back; your back hit the wall, causing air to leave your lungs.

The Belmont boy knelt down; his palm touched the ground in your direction. With a grunt of effort, he lifted his hand – and at the same pace, a wall of ice rose around you, enclosing you like an igloo.

The outside noises were muffled for some seconds.

You stayed there, sitting on the floor, unable to move; your entire body trembled, and it had nothing to do with the ice around you. Sweat dripped down your temples. Your breath came difficult, it seemed that the air was burning your throat and your lungs; your vision was blurred.

Drolta is alive Drolta is alive Drolta is alive was all that your mind repeated, yelled at you; Drolta is alive and she came after me, Drolta is worse than she was before, Drolta is going to kill Richter and Annette and Alucard–

Richter and Annette and Alucard–

They were all fighting.

Richter snapped his whip around violently, embedding it in blue flames. When one of his attacks hit, the creature – a black one, with a more humanoid figure – screamed in pain; he jumped, twirled in the air, protected his arm with a layer of ice when one of its attacks was about to hit. He tumbled back to avoid being hit by another gush of fire by the skull-headed night creature.

Annette fought a three-headed beast similar to a dragon; she controlled many pieces of iron around the gallery, aiming them at it. Some hits were successful. She jumped from crate to crate, avoiding the bites as all the three heads tried to catch her in different directions at the same moment.

And Alucard kept Drolta completely focused on him, maintaining the fight in the air, near the ceiling. It seemed that the sword barely made any damage against her leathery skin, and yet he kept attacking and tanking her attacks. You watched with horror as her hair (well, what was supposed to be hair; that thing wasn’t hair anymore) extended themselves like snakes, pursuing him around the gallery, causing great destruction were it hit.

The three of them were fighting. And you understood with great remorse that their objective was to keep the creatures so occupied that they wouldn’t be able to reach you or the mummy.

You were not only completely useless – you were getting in the way.

They couldn’t fight freely with you around.

You gulped, trying to stop panting, but you couldn’t. No no no, not this now. You don’t have time for this. You don’t have time! Why was your body playing tricks on you again? Why couldn’t it function when you needed the most? You needed to get out of there. Fuck, you needed to do something, anything! And still — your body wouldn’t obey.

Focus on a single thing, a simple thing, to try and muffle everything else.

Alucard’s method.

A single thing.

You looked around the small area inside the “igloo”.

Spotted a nail – probably used to lock the lid of the crates.

A simple thing.

With all your might, you forced your shaking arm to move; forced it to stretch, to reach for the nail, to hold it tightly.

Focus on a single thing, a simple thing.

With a grunt of effort, you pierced your own palm with the nail. The sharp pain awakened you from your numb state.

Right on time.

The black creature found an opening in Richter’s incessant attacks and launched itself towards you. The igloo melted. You rolled away from it and got up in a jump.

Annette immediately glued to your side. She was panting, holding blades in both hands; Richter threw a gush of blue flames, trying to keep the beasts away. You couldn’t see Alucard or Drolta behind the wall of fire. However, it wasn’t enough; the three night creatures were about to surround you. You’d have no escape.

Annette seemed to be reading your mind.

She let go of the blades for a second. She gesticulated with her hands as if grabbing something in the air; the wall beside you cracked. Annette “pulled” the air and let a scream of effort. Obeying her command, the wall teared apart, creating a hole towards the corridor – big enough for someone to pass through.

“Run, Ruby! Run!” Annette yelled.

And you obeyed.

You jumped through the hole and sprinted down the corridor, the pain in your palm completely forgotten. The ground was shaking, chandeliers tinkling, dust fell over your head. The sounds of the fight were slowly replaced by screams of fear and many steps. Of course, the palace was packed with workers. Some of them were running towards the Egyptian gallery, being attracted by the loud noises, but stopped running when they saw you.

“Get out of here! Your weapons won’t work!” You shouted without slowing your pace, gesticulating vehemently. “Get out, all of you! Right now!”

Luckily, you didn’t need to repeat yourself; the people in the hall started to run towards the exit.

You turned the corner, desperately trying to find an escape plan. You thought of running outside into the sunlight, but these things weren’t vampires; the sun wouldn’t protect you. You could try to mix with the crowd of people running out of the palace, but it would definitely put them all in danger. You could hide – but was there any safe place? These night creatures weren’t the same as the weak vampires you’ve encountered on your way to Paris. They were actually dangerous, even to your powerful allies.

Your thoughts were cut off when you heard a shrilling growl out there.

A gasp escaped past your lips. It was the three-headed beast – it was flying out there, soaring near the windows… scoping the area after you.

You entered the first room you saw.

You banged the double doors of the gallery. It was much smaller than the Egyptian one, yet the windows were equally large. You rushed to untie the heavy curtains and cover them, immersing the room in darkness; only a peek of light was visible through one of the windows. Shit shit shit shit you needed to barricade the door. You pushed a heavy crate with your back, positioning it against the door, yet you knew it wasn’t nearly enough; you needed to put something between the handles to truly lock it.

It was too dark now. You searched through the wooden boxes with shaking fingers, trying to find any artifact that could do the job; a steel bar, a vase thin enough, anything. The floor was still shaking incessantly. Please, let them be safe, you prayed silently to whoever was hearing; please, let them be safe.

You knelt in front of the final crate and lifted its lid. There were a couple of artifacts there, all so rusty and old that you could barely recognize what they were. A sword, a helmet, what looked like the remains of a broken shield, and… oh! A spear!

Or at least, it resembled a spear. It was completely covered in rust; thin, shorter than an actual spear, and it didn’t have a blade on the tip, but some sort of… rusty circle. Again, it was too dark to understand what that thing was, but it would do the job.

And yet – you hesitated to hold it.

Your fingers hovered over the object with hesitancy.

Suddenly… you weren’t hearing the outside noises anymore. They were distant. All you heard was your thundering heartbeat, your panting.

Your hand tingled. It had nothing to do with the injury you inflicted in yourself. The “spear” seemed to radiate some sort of warmth; you could feel it even some centimeters away. It made your stomach drop in a funny way. It wasn’t the fear or the adrenaline; it felt different.

Finally, you gulped and grabbed the object.

It was, indeed, hot. But that’s not what made your eyes widen.

As soon as you held it, the “spear” started to glow. No, it started to shine.

You watched as the rust around the object dissipated like dust. It shone so brightly that you had to close your eyes; it was so hot that you felt that your palm was about to burn. But then, after a few seconds, it stopped.

You opened your eyes again gasped.

You weren’t holding a rusty “spear” anymore. That wasn’t a spear; it was a scepter.

You got up from the ground slowly. The scepter was almost as tall as you were, made of solid gold. At its tip, the rusty “circle” was gone, being replaced by a small “plate” with twelve curvy “spikes” circling it in regular intervals; an unmistakable representation of the sun. Tiny inscriptions were engraved across its entirety. You brought it closer to your eyes, trying to understand what they meant since it was still dark inside the room – and when you recognized them, you almost dropped the object on the floor.

The writings were on the same strange language from the moon book Erzsebet made you read. You recognized the characters.

What the hell was that?!

The sound of an explosion so loud out there that made the floor shake yanked you out of your own head.

Fuck. I still need to lock the door, you remembered, rushing towards it with the scepter in hand. You were still shaking, clumsily trying to barricade the hangs with the long object–

A window crashed.

You screamed in horror. Glass flew everywhere, part of the wall was destroyed, the curtain was ripped off. You turned around to see the three-headed beast enter the gallery, groaning and hissing, as Annette gripped one of its necks for dear life.

She finally released the night creature before one of the heads could chop her, landing on her feet and putting herself between you and the thing. She was visibly tired, yet her eyes were ferocious. You noticed that the creature had lost its middle head, probably the reason for it to be so aggressive.

Annette growled. She controlled iron objects around her, launching them all at the creature; it flapped its wings violently to avoid being hit, destroying crates and artifacts around it. The creature ran towards Annette. She pushed you out of the way.

“Ruby, you need to–“ she jumped, avoiding a hit. “You need–“ she managed to cut the thing’s leg, skipping out of danger’s line before it could strike. “You need to go!”

There was no way to run through the broken window – to reach it, you’d have to come across the night creature. The doors were the only escape – and they were fucking barricaded by the crate you put there previously. You groaned, putting all of your strength into pushing it away, the scepter completely forgotten on the floor. You needed to run, you needed to run, you needed to–

Your eyes were glued in Annette.

Like what happened at the forest, it seemed that the world was moving in slow motion again.

You saw as Annette twirled mid-air above the beast; with one hand, she controlled one of her blades to pierce the creature’s left skull, but it was unsuccessful; the thing caught the blade with its teeth. Her landing trajectory was at the right side of the same head. She already held another blade firmly with both hands.

Annette landed graciously. With a groan of effort, she sliced its left head, beheading it.

But the right head was still there. The right head already had its jaws open wide. Annette was stuck between the remaining head and the neck of the one she had just beheaded. There was no escape route. She would not have time to react.

You saw all that unfold in front of your eyes and got to the obvious conclusion: Annette was going to die.

So you moved.

You sprinted from the place you were on the floor. You didn’t wait until the world would start moving fast again. You didn’t wait for Annette to realize what you were about to do.

You put yourself between her and the monster.

Its jaws tightened around the entire right side of your body – and when the world started moving at its normal speed again, all that existed was pain.

[dreamyroi]

AceAnn’s First Impression 

Credit artist © QS

“ハートの女王を知らねーの?” (You don't know the Queen of Hearts?) «うーん、その名前、どこかで聞いたことがあるような気がするけど…この人、誰だったかな？» (Hmm, I feel like I've heard that name somewhere before... but who is this person?)

What was their first impression of each other?

Since Annette takes on the role of the main character (Yuu), her first encounter with Ace follows the official storyline of the game. At that point, she had been assigned to clean the main street as a janitor, and Ace happened to stumble upon her. He ended up explaining the story of "The Great Seven" to her.

At first, Annette was genuinely grateful that someone took the time to explain things to her. Coming from another world with absolutely no knowledge of this one, it was incredibly helpful. She didn’t hesitate to compliment and thank Ace sincerely.

However, when Ace’s behavior shifted from being friendly to more mocking and mean-spirited, she was a bit taken aback, maybe even slightly annoyed. Still, true to her nature, she tried to remain polite and kept a respectful distance from him.

Although she didn’t take it too seriously, she made it clear that she wasn’t pleased with how he was acting. This started to create some tension between them. Eventually, things escalated into an argument between Grim and Ace, especially after Annette openly said she wasn’t happy with the way Ace was treating her. That only made Ace act even more irritating on purpose, going out of his way to provoke both her and Grim further.

However, their relationship gradually improved after the prologue.

Even so, Annette never really treated Ace as sweetly as she might have planned to at the beginning. She continued to keep her distance, and even scolded him when he ate Riddle’s tart, pointing out that it might’ve been prepared for an important occasion, and that he shouldn’t be eating something that didn’t belong to him in the first place.

In that moment, the tables turned in Annette’s favor, and it felt like a bit of payback for how things went when they first met. Ace clearly wasn’t thrilled about being called out by her.

It showed that, while they were getting along a little better, there were still some lingering judgments and misunderstandings between them.

Yet, life’s full of surprises like that because they're now besties!

With Ace and Annette, it’s one of those cases where you meet someone, instantly think you're not going to get along and yet, as time goes on, you somehow end up becoming friends.

※ Since by now, the two of them had become pretty close friends. Although I’m not exactly sure about the timeline, I think Annette probably asked Ace around book 3 or 4 why he acted the way he did when they first met.

In my yume story, Ace explains that when he first saw her, she reminded him of his ex-girlfriend. He didn’t like that feeling, so he ended up disliking her right off the bat. Something about her just rubbed him the wrong way, so he went over and started mocking her for no real reason.

Naturally, Annette listened with a confused look on her face at first. Then, her expression turned into a frown as she said:

"Seriously? You started picking on me just because I reminded you of your ex? That’s your reason? That’s beyond ridiculous. Are you even listening to yourself?"

At first, she thought he was just joking around but when she saw how he went quiet and avoided her eyes, she couldn’t help but laugh. 

Was he actually serious?

It was so absurd that her anger practically melted away on the spot. Honestly, it was hilarious.

Too bad for Ace, he had no way to defend himself after that. And Annette? She made sure to never let him live it down. Sure, she forgave him... but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to get a little payback.

[bunnyluvx]

You were asking about prompts for Richter and I have a two!! Richter x dhampire reader where they are introduced through alucard. Richter x Annette's sister.

in his arms. ♡

featuring: richter belmont x gn! dhampir! reader. (w/ alucard and annette!)

summary: you reunite with alucard, richter and annette after drolta has taken sekhmet's corpse, and someone is very happy to see you again.

warnings: minors and ageless blog dni regardless of content. season 2 spoilers.

tags: hurt/comfort | one-shot | fluff | physical affection | second pov | no y/n use | fatherly! alucard | sister figure! maria | a lot of other characters are mentioned

a/n: i hope i did you justice, moss! this fic is intended to be romantic, but can be interpreted as platonic too, so take it how you will! thank you to all of the wonderful people who've been giving me requests, i really appreciate you all and will get to them when i can! requests are still open and i do commissions! more info is on my profile. thank you all for the love, and enjoy! <3

date started: 7:05PM, february 6th, 2025.

date finished: 10:23PM, february 7th, 2025.

dc: @cafekitsune | ss: a1i.scenes insta | ib: @creativepromptsforwriting ♡ | wc: 2k | ao3

Sky which once warmly held the sun relinquishes her hold on her lover to make way for the night. They slowly slide out of one another's embrace, creating brilliant hues where they exchange their farewells. The clouds, ever the passers-by, assure the sky that the sun will come again, and remind her that tonight, she will get to hold another love, the moon. Below, Paris stone stands tall, proudly protecting its people and their creations. It believes that it will be able to endure what is to come, but the wind's silence leaves room to second-guess.

On their mission to retrieve Sekhmet's mummified body, Alucard, Richter and Annette entered France's capital with hopes of finding it before the Vampire Messiah's servants. Not even a minute after locating the goddess' remains, Emissary Drolta Tzuentes arrived with a hoard of night creatures, and in the midst of battle, Sekhmet's corpse was taken. Alucard tried to go after her to no avail, for he was quickly kicked into the river beneath them.

Frustration boils within the dhampir's blood as he emerges from the water, coming to a stand and taking a few steps away from the river's edge before pushing back wet white locks with one hand. A scowl scrunches onto a usually calm expression as he strides to regroup with Richter and Annette. The young revolutionaries hurriedly make their way to Alucard, and once meeting with him again, Richter is more than ready to start planning their next moves. "So, what do we do now?" The boy asks.

After hundreds of years of dealing with Belmonts' bad decisions, Alucard's patience has grown thin, so he's quick to snap at Richter, turning to face him with fangs bared and brows furrowed, "This would not have happened, Richter Belmont, if you hadn't told them where we were going."

The brunette's lip pokes out into a guilty pout after receiving this scolding, and Annette is quick to come to his defense, "It wouldn't take a sorcerer to predict we were going to Paris, Alucard. And we thought that Drolta was dead. We thought you'd killed her."

The dhampir's expression has calmed from its hostility rather quickly, and his eyes close while he lets out a sigh. Boots clacking upon the opposing side of the pavement interrupts Alucard's attempt to voice a new plan. All attention diverts toward the sound, in preparation for a fight, but the trio's shoulders relax once they see the source.

You. Alucard had introduced you to the group shortly after his arrival, knowing that you would be willing to help in any capacity that you were required. Seeing as you are a dhampir too, he believed that there was no harm in having more supernatural strength on their side.

Before the trio left for Paris, you agreed to watch Maria while they were gone. Only a few days had passed when you felt something pulling you out of Machecoul. It was an unexplainable feeling, all you knew was that you had to go. You informed Juste of what you were sensing, and he permitted you to pursue this calling, in trust of a reason behind your motivation. So, you began your journey, and apparently arrived just in time.

The three stare at you in wonder as you approach, like they couldn't believe their eyes. Alucard is first to speak up with asking, "What are you doing here?"

When your feet finally come to a stop, you lean over and lay your hands on your knees wearily. Your chest rises and falls with each heavy breath you take, eyes flickering from the floor to everyone else multiple times. You don't know how long you'd been running for, but you're glad that you got there when you did. "I felt like you needed my help," You explain, "So, I came."

"You're supposed to be with Maria." Alucard reminds you, agitation resurfacing in his tone.

"Juste said he could handle it." You insist.

"You left Juste, who admitted that he didn't know how to deal with teenage girls, with a teenage girl?" Alucard emphasizes, fangs poking out of the frown on his face.

"Fighting is pointless right now. We have more important things to worry about," Annette redirects.

Finally, you stand up straight and tilt your head up to the sky to take a breath. You look back at the group, resting your hands on your hips. "Annette is right. I'm here, that can't be changed, so let's move on."

For the first time in almost over a week, your eyes meet Richter's. He looks completely bewildered, lips curled up into a grin and bright blue eyes sparkling with joy. You didn't know each other for very long at all, so most of what you know about Richter has come from Maria. The girl most commonly describes Richter as an ungrateful wanker, often recounting memories of when he acted impulsively by jumping into fights that he couldn't have finished alone. Many of these stories ended with Maria saving him, and while she did enjoy embarrassing Richter, you knew that she admired him deep-down; She wouldn't say it aloud, but she didn't have to.

Based on the time that you were able to personally spend with Richter, you could tell that he had a lot of responsibility on his shoulders. Carrying the Belmont name was no easy task, but being an older brother holds just as much weight. There was a lot of tension between Richter and Maria after her mother was turned, and it was evident to you that Richter blamed himself for that. Tera made the decision on her own accord to sacrifice herself to Erzsebet, he knows that, but Belmonts have always been protectors. He has fought a generous amount of vampires throughout his lifetime, and Erzsebet was the one enemy that he couldn't defeat. He believes it to be his failure, and it was a great price to pay.

Something else that you learned about Richter is that when things are looking dark, he tries to make light of it. Humor is his way out of despair, so when he was brooding by himself and you came to sit with him, he would crack a joke. You came to admire this about him rather quickly, and it became something for the two of you to bond over. You would go back and forth to try to make him feel better about their current circumstances, and when he walked away, he was able to do so with a smile. Both of you felt a little lighter after that.

You took turns listening to each other talk about your lives, and what got you to where you were. Richter spoke of his mother, and a few memories that he shared with her, and you spoke of your experiences living in this world as a dhampir. Richter gave you his undevoted attention when you talked about what things were like for you growing up and now. When he got the chance to listen to you, with everything that you shared with him, he became all the more awestruck. He had never met a dhampir before you or Alucard, so he was interested in learning about how different your histories' were. Unlike many in your past, Richter appreciated the diversity between you and was eager to learn more.

You don't consider Richter to be someone you're particularly close with yet, but you do believe that there is potential for something beautiful to grow between you. The expression on his face tells you that he feels similarly, God does he. While traveling alongside Alucard and Annette, Alucard often told stories of you and the many adventures that you had together. Learning about you through him only made Richter want to know more, to speak with you personally and listen to any tale you wished to tell. Admittedly, he was a little disappointed when you agreed to stay in Machecoul with Maria, but he knew it was for the better. You're magnetizing to him in a way that he can't explain, and here you are, standing in front of him.

Unable to resist the pull any longer, Richter leaps forward to wrap his arms around you. Your eyes widen at the sudden embrace and you remain still, unprepared for the contact but not willing to reject it. Strong, light arms encase you closely around your neck to his body, and he swears that you slot perfectly against him. Today marks the first day in history where a Belmont has prayed, because Richter is pleading to whatever will listen that he doesn't have to let you go. Would you have felt this way in his arms if he had held you sooner?

Alucard and Annette find themselves just as shocked as you are. They have noticed the softness that swims within his eyes when Richter hears or speaks of you, but they wouldn't have expected for him to spring to you like this. Fond smiles and knowing gazes quickly overtake their features while they watch you stand still as stone, dumbfounded. Your arms slowly raise to hover over Richter's back before they slowly rest there. The only words you can manage to say come out in a soft mutter, as your eyes slide to look at the boy hugging you so tightly, "Hey, Richter.."

A deep inhale sounds from Richter's nostrils as he breathes you in. Words could not describe the feedback that his senses received, but it's so uniquely you. In his mind, it is solidified that you are truly here, and he couldn't want you anywhere else. He wonders if you are always this warm, or if it is just the armor you adorn yourself in. He nestles his face into the crook of your neck and closes his eyes, a relieved sigh breathing onto your skin as he mumbles, "I'm so happy to see you."

Of all people, you would not have expected for Richter Belmont to display such a sentiment. It is far from unwelcome, though, as you find yourself able to relax in his arms. The tension in your shoulders slowly unwinds with the rest of the muscles in your body coming in-tide. Your eyes close as you nuzzle into his shoulder, savoring the connection that you have with Richter while you have it. He feels just as warm as you are, comfortably so, and you realize that you're asking yourself when the last time you felt so safe was. As you inhale, the aroma of familiar forests and a light hint of sweat greets your senses. You find it calming, giving you all the more reason to melt in his embrace. "Yeah..I'm happy to see you too," You agree tenderly.

You are permitted a few seconds longer to cherish this moment. You wish that it could last forever, but you know that there are other pressing matters at hand. You both seemed to forget that, for you collectively jump when Annette pipes up with, "Are you two done cuddling now, so that we can focus?"

Wide-eyed with rosy cheeks, you and Richter regrettably pry yourselves away from each other to face Alucard and Annette. You both nervously glance in opposite directions towards the floor, your hands fold in front of your body while Richter rubs the back of his neck awkwardly with the opposite on his hip. Annette shakes her head lightheartedly at the two of you while Alucard just smiles, starting to walk away as he gives you all instructions, "You three look for nests of vampires. When Erzsebet's army attacks, we don't want another front opening up into the city."

You all nod, which licenses Alucard to promptly make his getaway. There is a newly found trio now with you, Annette and Richter, and you all dash into the city to begin your search. In your rush, Annette turns her eyes to you and admits, "It is good to have you back."

You look back at her, and a smile blesses your lips. "Thanks. It's good to see you guys too."

"How is everyone back in Machecoul?" Richter asks, brows furrowed with worry.

You shrug and cast your eyes ahead. "Ah, they're coping. I'll tell you more later. For now, let's get to work."

@BUNNYLUVX ,, all rights reserved. do not copy/plagiarize any of my works or submit it into ai. any and all support is appreciated! <3

[verslxt]

pairing : iwaizumi x fem bodied!reader

warnings : face sitting, oral (fem receiving)

authors note : thank you guys for letting me take that break. you are so sweet (annette is iwaizumi and the readers 3 month old daughter)

you put your plush thighs over your boyfriends head one hand on the headboard and the other adjusting your hair "come onn pretty girl, sit on my face its fine. i won't suffocate". you look down at your boyfriend who's smiling up at you "what if i do suffocate you? who's gunna help father annette??". all of the sudden iwaizumi pulls your thighs down making you fully sit on his face

"ho-holy fu-fuck iwa" you moan out as he licks up your slit his tongue prodding your sweet pussy. you grab onto the headboard with both hands and wait for iwaizumi to keep going

you moan out as you feel him start to lick up and down you as you start to slowly rock back and fourth on his face. feeling his nose bump your clit over and over again loving the feeling

"fu-fuck haji~" you threw your head back in ecstacy as iwaizumi kept licking you up and down your clit still bumping his nose over and over again. suddenly iwaizumi brought his hands up to your thighs to stop you from moving. you also very suddenly felt iwaizumis tongue make a small little circle around your clit

one of your hands went down to his hair to give it a small slight tug to notify him that you loved the way he was moving his tongue. then he made line going down, then a line to the side, then another line. he was spelling his name on your clit. you realized it as soon as you felt him spell the A and the J. you moaned out

as you felt him finish out both his first and last name. oh my god he was so amazing with his tongue then you felt the knot forming in your stomach. the knot that meant you were cumming soon. the way you clenched down on nothing as he started to suck down on your clit

"mhm fuck haji~~" you moaned out as your knot finally snapped. you felt iwaizumi smile against you as you came. you lifted your legs off of iwaizumis head and he smiled at you "i told you i wouldn't suffocate." you looked at him and wiped some of your cum off his face

"that hands down the best orgasam you've ever given me"

[alpaca-clouds]

If I had a penny for every time a Belmont got startled by a fox...

So, @aquilaofarkham pointed this out on BlueSky, and is totally right about it (they made the screenshots to, thanks for allowing me to use them!). Why I clocked this scene in Nocturne as well - I actually did not draw the comparison to the Trevor season 3 scene. But yes, that is indeed...

If I got a penny for every time a Belmont got startled by a fox, I would have two pennies, which is not a lot, but it is weird it happened twice.

And you know what that means, right?

THEORY TIME!!!

As some people might know: Since season 1 of Nocturne was out, I am very very certain of one thing. And that thing is, that the Belmont bloodline also goes back to a god.

In S1 of Nocturne when Annette talks about her own divine bloodline, she says a lot of people do have a divine ancestor, but the knowledge got lost. And to me this instantly read as: "Actually, by the way, the Belmonts totally have a divine ancestor as well!"

And I have been riddling since then, who it could be.

So, what if the fox is a representation of that ancestor?

Yes. This does mean I get to talk mythology again.

So, foxes. In early European folklore the fox is basically equivalent to coyote in North American folklore. Especially in Germany and France Reynard or Reinecken shows up a lot as a trickster spirit in the form of a fox. While there are some theories on Reynard somewhat going back to an actual deity, we kinda don't know about that for sure, because we have absolutely no textual evidence for it, and it mostly goes back to the fact that throughout the area in early medieval times the depiction of Reynard as a trickster is very very consistent - and also lines up with more eastern depictions of fox adjacant deities. Since we know that those are connected through Indo-European culture group it is not so weird to assume that there might have been a fox trickster deity, though if there was, we do not know their name.

But the good news is: The Belmonts are French in origin, and we do know from Trevor that they had contact to indigenous European people (aka the Celts). So, the highest likelihood for a divine ancestor is definitely a Celtic god or goddess.

Now, if we talk about Celtic deities we obviously run into the problem: Outside the Gaelic culture we know Jack Shit. Because fuck the fucking Romans and fuck the Christians even more, who very thoroughly erased most stuff about those religions. My anthropology heart does not spend three hours a day crying about this fact at all!!!!

Of course, we know the Celtic cultures were related, so there is a high likelihood that at least some of the deities from the Gaelic culture will also show up in the Gaulic culture, but we do not know for certain.

Which on the bright side also means, that my guess is about as good as whatever the writers might come up with. Hooray!

So, my first guess is Adsagsona. A goddess about whom we know exactly nothing. We know she was a goddess of magic, who was invoked in spells. And we have the suspicion she was maybe linked to foxes. Maybe. Because the thing is, we do have one written evidence of her being invoked, and some artifacts from the same area she was invoked in that might be related to her and the practice of magic. Which is not a lot. Cool bit about that, of course: It would totally give a writer freedom to make up whatever about this.

Next guess would be Arduinna. She was a forest goddess who got merged with Diana when the Romans colonized what is France today. She definitely got depicted a lot with forest animals, and definitely also was connected to the hunt (which works well with the Belmonts), though the preferred animal for her to be paired with was either the deer or the boar. Which, I would guess, makes sense, because people hunted those more for food than they would hunt foxes.

A bit more vague would be the god Cunomaglus. Because he is British, not Gallic, though definitely he is a hunting god, and while his main animal was the dog, he definitely got also depicted with foxes. No doubt about that bit. xD

Next up would be a probably related god to Cunomaglus: Nodens. Again, British. Again, hunting. Again, the main animal are gods. I would not know about him being depicted with foxes, but given he has a lot of overlap with Cunomaglus I would also not be surprised. Bonus points, because I know there is fandom-overlap between GDT's Hellboy movies and Castlevania: Nuada is based on the Irish equivalent to Nodens, and draws a lot of influence from the Brittanic god.

If we go a bit more wild, we could also make a guess for Ceres, though that one would be a bit weird. Ceres is of course a Roman Goddess, but Romans were also in France forever, so it is not impossible. Ceres is heavily associated with foxes, though mainly in the sense that foxes are sacrificed for her. But there is a fox association.

There is also with the Roman gods a very loose association with both Dionysus and Diana. But Diana usually gets depicted with dogs and stags, and for Dionysus there is exactly one myth linking him to foxes. So... Eh.

Lastly... I will just leave here that Diana's Slavic equivalent, Devana, actually gets depicted as a fox more than once. But Slavic culture is kinda on the other end of Europe. So it is possible, but also... Eh. It is a far bit away. But then again, the Belmonts lived in today's Romania for a long while, so it is not impossible, I guess.

And that's it. For today at least.

But I wanted to get this off my chest.

[flaresemily]

Hello hope your having a good day! I have an angst idea for richter from castlevania nocturne. I was thinking of Richter and the reading being friends when they where younger and after his mom’s death, going to France they lost touch.

Eventually richter finds out that reader had been turned into a night creature (he realized from maybe something still on them jewelry, birthmark), how would that go?

I wanted to leave it open since a few ppl don’t like detailed requests sometimes 😅 if you do get around to this thank you!

It's okay if it's with me you can just make it as detailed as you can because this is to prevent me from being confused on what you are requesting. Idk if it's a good angst or not

Richter x Female Reader : Night Creatures.

"Richter!! Behind you!" Maria shouts at Richter seeing one of the night creatures trying to stab him from behind but fails.

"This thing keeps coming nonstop!" Richter replies as he kills one of them. "I feel like someone is controlling them but who?" Annette said as she protected Maria backs.

"weird...feels like we're missing a piece here" He mumbled to himself.

"If all 3 of you would look ahead. That's probably the master" said Alucard while glaring at the dark corners of the night street.

"get ready! It's about to strike!" They all get to their fighting stance. As the creature launched itself to them long claws were sheathed from behind the hood.

Cling!

"AGH!!!"

"Richter!!" As the creature attacks him with its long claw Alucard manages to launch some attack by cutting the left hand of the creature.

The creature growls before Maria summons her birds and attack it making the hood falls off.

It is revealed to be a female night creature. Long hair,sharp teeth,6 eyes. As if the creature stares at their souls.

"weirdly enough she maintains some of her...human face" Alucard comments on her appearance.

She growled at them before launching herself at them.

"Take cover!!!" As Annette shouted. Richter's world seems to be slow as the creature attacks him first.

Luckily Alucard managed to save him. "What were you thinking! Standing there like a prey!" He scolded him.

Richter was still in shock not by the creature attacks but with the creature's appearance.

"Richter are you alright?" Maria asked him.

"I...I..." As he looks down he remembers a promise he make

Flashbacks (yes flashbacks)

"promise me you come and protect me when I need help" a young girl probably 3 years old asked a young boy.

"I promise!" As they linked their pinky finger they laughed at each other's behavior.

Flashbacks end

I...I kno---" the creature screams again before attacking them.

"ugh it won't stop attacking...even when we are already blind it's eyes!"

Richter only remains silent. He slowly walks to the night creatures. "What are you doing!" Whisper Annette in case the creature hears her.

"just take cover...tell the others I handled her"

Annette just looks at him weirdly and runs to the others. As they all hide behind a ruin wall they watch Richter getting closer to the creature.

"hey beautiful..." The creature turns around and lets out a scream. "I was too late aren't I?" He let out a sad chuckle.

"... it's always like this, always late to save you even now I'm such a useless friend"

As the other 3 listened to his speech, they were starting to understand what was going on.

"do you know I actually got beat up by a female?" As he said, the creature attacks him again. He uses his whip and binds her leg together. Then he uses his power to freeze her leg after binding them.

The creature snarls at him.

"I'm sorry please... please forgive me" he used his power to freeze her whole body leaving only the head.

She growls and snarls at him. As if warning him.

"hey hey look it's me? Richie the 'wannabe hero' remember?" The creature seems to calm down.

"I am Alucard! And I'm gonna kill you!" As Richter said it in a playful tone. The creature seems to recognize it as its blinded eyes widen.

(the others feel cringe at that especially Alucard he looks like he got betrayed.)

As Richter cupped the creature's face. He brings the creature's forehead down and kisses her forehead. The creature truly calms down this time. It cries at the feeling.

"I'm sorry...I'm sorry it's all my fault isn't it...I failed once again." He cried out. The creature screams once again trying to escape his grasp.

"please! Please!! I'm begging you! Stop I'm sorry! It's my fault! It's my fault!" As the final stroke the creature breaks out from the ice and slams Richter to the wall.

Alucard sensing this quickly attack the creature.

"YOᑌ lie!! ᎽϴႮ ˡᶦᵉ!" The creature cried out in pain.

"ꪱׁׁׁׅׅׅtׁׅ 𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗻 ｉｔ ｂｕｒｎ!! 𝘼𝙜𝙝!!! ՆɿคՐ სiმჁ!!"

Richter try to reach out for her but was stop by Annette.

"you have to let her go she's suffering."

"I can't..." He sob. "I need to keep my promise and yet I failed once again! Why! Why!" He punches the floor in anger.

"I was always late to save her. And yet she was always on time to save me. Why am I so useless!" He cry. Tears flowing nonstop.

"𝑺𝒂... ᵥₑ.... ₘₑ" Richter eye widen.

"It's now or never Richter!! You need to save her!! She's hurting! She's suffering! Keeping her alive just makes her suffer more!"

He screams in anger and runs to the creature. He uses his power shaping them like a dagger and slams it to the creature chest 5 times. The creature chokes on its own blood and falls backwards.

Richter walks to the creature still crying and cradles it. He screams and screams and screams till he loses his voice.

"I'm sorry...I'm sorry y/n." He sob.

"ₘₒ... ᵣₒₙ" he heard the creature mumble and smile. "Yeah...I'm a moron"

As the creature chest stops moving it indicates that the creature finally meets its end.

"someday...I promise I save you just in time"

He carries the creature and buried it near the lake.

"who is she actually and how did you recognize her?" Maria asks watching Richter bury the corpse.

"...her leg" he smile. "Her leg?"

"she has a burn mark on her left leg. She got it from a fire that happened when we were little. It was still there" he answered.

"now...she probably wishes for me to continue living so... who's gonna cook tonight?"

Slap!

"as if!! We already cooked yesterday it's your turn!" Annette say and walk away with Maria.

"Do you agree with them?" Alucard side eye him and smirks. "Guess you will be cooking alone tonight Belmont boy" he chuckled and followed the other two.

"hey! It's not fair?!"

The end~

[meowssii]

Please, tell us more about your HCs for Birkin

AHHHH!!! i would LOVE to!! 💕

here’s some headcanons off the top of my head

🧪🧪🧪🧪🧪🧪🧪🧪🧪🧪🧪

- i headcanon him to have autism and ocd :3

- i think he LOVES 80s new wave music! it’s his favorite genre and has been for a long time. i actually have a playlist for him! you can find it HERE!!

- follow up: his favorite bands/singers are the smiths, david bowie, and oingo boingo!!!

- i think he is the type to really like flirting with others, but becomes a flustered mess when other people flirt with him

- he has extreme trust issues, and thinks everyone is out to get him in some way or another. there are very few people he trusts (honestly, this is so close to canon)

- follow up of that: he is INCREDIBLY defensive. even when others are not “out to get him” he is quick to defend what he’s doing and the validity of it

- his favorite colors are muted greens and blues

- he mumbles/hums to himself when he’s thinking, writing, working on anything. he doesn’t know he does this, but others around him do

- wesker got him into gothic music when they went to school together. he often steals wesker’s t-shirts. his favorite bands in the genre are bauhaus and cocteau twins

- he needs glasses. he wore them mostly in the training facility, and wears contacts in adulthood (unless he’s very tired)

- he is an only child. he was raised by strict parents who encouraged his intelligence and never any of his hobbies, this is why he doesn’t have many things he really enjoys doing in adulthood other than work.

- he doesn’t make eye contact very often, either out of discomfort or not caring to, but makes eye contact with annette and wesker when he speaks to them

- his handwriting is incredibly sloppy cursive

- he likes to read to sherry (it’s some of the only quality time he spends with her)

I FORGOT TO ADD ONE

- his favorite genre/era of movies is the 1930s run of universal classic monster movies, and his favorite is frankenstein!!!

thank you so much for the ask this was so much fun to write!! i love him very much <3

[ankh-morporkianpostalworker]

A Ranking of Canon Castlevania/Nocturne Ships by How Good They'd Be at Hosting My 30th Birthday Party

This ranking is objective and final (until I change my mind to make this joke funnier)

1 - Dracula and Lisa: The ship that started it all. Charming, well-educated, would make me feel welcome in their home. The kind of couple that doesn't make you feel like a third wheel. The wine and apps would be immaculately paired, the conversation would be lively and informative, I'd probably borrow at least one book while I was there, and I'd almost certainly go back next year. 10/10

2 - Sypha and Trevor: Smart, prepared, know how to fuckin party. The snacks would be on-point, the beer would be cold, and the stories amazing. The only forseeable downside is that, as new parents, they'd probably have to shut down the party early, but I also don't like staying out late anyway. 9/10

3 - Richter and Annette: While the food would be amazing and the hosts fun, Richter and Annette are still in that honeymoon phase, the one where they're more into each other than anything else. I'd feel like a third wheel at my own party. 6/10

4 - Mizrak and Olrox: The worst. The vibes would just be rancid. Have you ever been out with a couple that's kinda toxic? Yeah, that. No, thank you. 0/10

[silna-pdf]

how tall is your birkin next to annette and wesker?

I draw Birkin to be his canon height (178cm) and comparatively to Annette he is 5cm shorter than her. Same height difference with him and Wesker

[lolziesitsame]

Okay I'm about to yap get ready guys (nocturne season 2 mahoosive spoilers)

Fucking I'm obsessed okay so first absolutely love the drolta backstory I was already in love with her but omg after all that ? Yes pls

Then alucard god I missed him and all the fucking fight scenes with him were so awesome (well talk more about that in a minute ) and cmon the scene where he comes out of the water with his hair all wet? Kill me

Speaking of that holy shit the art and animation fucking stunning like I loved the og series style but oh my god nocturne improves on it so much ESPECIALLY with richters fire and all of the scenes with Annette in the spirit world

Speaking of Annette god my girl she's so strong when she met her mother in the spirit world Ngl guys I cried and god her kicking that snake guys ass in the lake boat scene beautiful

Now richter time god I love him so much like Ngl on the first season i wasn't the biggest fan of him but oh my god he KICKED ASS this season and don't get me started on how dorky he was with Annette that whole romance was so cute and I can't wait to see more of them in season 3 (please)

Maria' oh my god girl summoned a godamn DRAGON and like as bad as it was for her mental health I'm glad that her father is gone bc that fucker is the Bain of my existence and the whole reason this shit happened in the first place and Tera my god the stuff with her is crazy but we'll get to that in a bit (I say this a lot I have a lot to say)

Now for the guy who's totally not my favourite olrox ...him and Mizrak oh my god I felt like I was being edged the entire time with those two like one minute Mizraks crying into his arms and the next he's insulting olrox crazy times .

The scene where like olrox is being branded I was like "nah they aren't actually gonna the next scene will show that somehow he got out of it-"

Then his sad face when it was shown he DID get branded and at that point I was itching for erzsebet (hope I spelled that right ) to get beaten to a pulp

Speaking of that let's talk the last two episodes and a bit more

(I'm nearly done I promise )

So when olrox was shown Yk on the boat about to leave I was sad bc he was leaving Mizrak and I was wondering what the hell was going to happen AND THEN

When everyone was fighting in the last 2 episodes I said "if olrox comes back to help fight I will scream " and boy did I my mum thought I was being murdered

Fucking that whole ass fight scene was fantastic like I see why this took two years to make Castlevania animators you're like gods actually

Bloody erzsebet girl would NOT stay down and then she was rescued ONLY for drolta to go " nah my turn now" girl I thought sekmet wouldn't win until season 3 at that point but I was quickly proven wrong

When like Mizrak was injuring and olrox came running I think like something like shattered in me my god the love sublots in this season were fantastic

Speaking of those two I did NOT expect olrox to make Mizrak into a vampire but it was a welcome suprise

And finally before I exceed tumblrs word count the twist that tera is possessed by that old man demon dude ??? God I can't wait for season 3

Anyways if you read this whole thing thanks sorry for the yap

[amaramiyu]

How did you like Richter’s & Annette’s romantic development in Season 2 of Castlevania Nocturne?

I think that Richter's and Annette's romantic development in Castlevania: Nocturne Season 2 was chef's kiss. It was rewarding and validating to see the seeds that were planted back during Season 1 come to fruition.

Back during Season 1, I was in the trenches along with a few others who also saw the vision or peeped their romantic relationship blossoming. I even wrote a whole analysis about their relationship.

Not to mention it was confirmed during Season 2 that Richter fell for Annette after she saved him from those night creatures. I'm also convinced that Annette fell for Richter during episode 7 of Season 1 during their talk in the attic/bedroom.

Overall, Richette was one of the many highlights of Season 2 and I'm glad that the support for the Richette ship has grown. I hope that Castlevania: Nocturne gets renewed for Season 3.

Thanks for asking!

[zorostitties]

Aurora, 4 (m)

⤕ Your existence had been an endless night, where shadows whispered long forgotten secrets. Trapped in a golden cage, your fragile mind and shattered memories were chains that kept you from dreaming of freedom. Then, he appeared with the first light of dawn, like a gentle sun warming your cold skin. In his gaze, the promise of a new beginning; in his presence, the sunrise your soul had longed for.

In which Alucard saves you from Erzsebet.

pairing: alucard (castlevania) x (f) reader

genre: angst, romance, slow burn, eventual smut

warnings: violence/blood, explicit language, mental health issues, grief, physical abuse.

rating: 18+

word count: 6k

A/N: God!!! I can't believe I finished this chapter so fast!!!! I really wanted to post it before monday. Hope this makes your sunday night a bit less depressing!! Thank you for all the comments past chapter 💞💞 they really motivate me to keep writing! Without further ado, please enjoy <3

⤕  Masterlist  ⤕ Also on AO3 ⤕ Playlist

Dracula.

Your reflection on the lake’s surface was distorted – the perfect materialization of your troubled mind.

Dracula.

An acrid taste had been in your tongue for the past hours, making you wonder if you’d actually picked a poisonous mushroom by mistake. No… that probably wasn’t the reason. Your back was as straight as iron, your hands politely over your knees, as you strongly avoided even glancing at the half vampire in front of you while he and Richter rowed the boat.

Dracula was considered by many the Vampire King for a long time. He was extremely powerful.

Richter’s words had been replaying in your head nonstop. You thought about that entire conversation again, and again, and again, trying to put your finger on what exactly triggered that… memory. If you could call it a memory, that is.

It was more of a feeling.

Dracula.

The mention of that name made a shiver run down your spine. Made your reflexes sharpen as if, suddenly, you were in the presence of a hungry wolf ready to launch at you. Not a face awakened in your mind – but a sense of danger that, somehow, felt extremely familiar. As if “Dracula” wasn’t the name of a man, but of a natural disaster, like an erupting volcano.

Where have you heard of that name before?

Perhaps Erzsebet or Drolta had mentioned it around you? After all, Richter said he used to be the Vampire King, and Erzsebet considered herself the Vampire Queen – goddess –; it might’ve made sense for her to talk about him at some point. But why did that name evoked such fear in your gut? Richter also said that this Dracula had been killed hundreds of years ago. You couldn’t have actually met him. Although your sense of time was distorted, there’s no way you’d been alive for that long. You were not a vampire.

And yet… you healed like one.

The more you thought about it, the larger the question mark grew in your thoughts.

Why did you heal?

It wasn’t exactly an ability – you hadn’t learned it, your body just did it. You had no control over it. If you had, you wouldn’t have bothered staying alive for so long under Erzebet’s imprisonment. It was more of a… condition. No matter to what extremes Drolta went with her punishments or Erzsebet’s with her hobby of hurting you when she was bored, your body always mended itself back together.

In fact…

It was more than just “mending” itself back together. It could regrow if necessary.

Vampires could heal from injuries that were fatal for humans. But you’d seen vampires die a lot, too – by Erzsebet’s hands, by Alucard’s hands, by Richter and Annette’s hands. You’d never seen a vampire regrow entire limbs if they were cut using magic or sanctified weapons.

You didn’t heal like a vampire, as Alucard stated back then.

You healed better than one.

It was a bit baffling on your part to have never questioned this condition of yours. Now that you were experiencing the real world, you understood just how truly odd you were. This thing couldn’t be normal and you had no idea why. You were beginning to hate this word – why, why, why. Your existence was surrounded by whys, but your stupid head couldn’t say no becauses, it could only bring forward more whys–

Annette woke up with a loud gasp that made you gasp and flinch away from her.

The girl had been sleeping for the past hour, laying in front of you in a position that couldn’t be comfortable. She jumped to a sitting position, aiming her blade to… nothing, in such a sudden move that yanked you out of your own head and made the two man stop rowing the boat.

She was trembling. The three of you stared at her in shock for some seconds.

“...Annette,” Richter said quietly, as if afraid to scare her. “It’s okay. It was just a dream.”

The girl in yellow didn’t look at him, though, keeping her scared sight glued ahead.

“Are those dreams, too?”

Finally, you looked at where she was pointing with her blade.

It took a while to understand what was between the trees under the moonlight. You narrowed your eyes… and when you understood what you were seeing, you couldn’t help but gasp.

Corpses.

Countless corpses hanging from the trees on the river bank.

“This is Erzsebet’s doing,” Alucard said in a somber tone.

“But we’re miles from Machecoul,” Richter was in disbelief.

Alucard closed his eyes for a moment – a subtle and solemn act of respect, perhaps. “She has followers. Everywhere.”

But then, the wind brought voices to your ears. Groans. Screams. Cries.

There were still people there.

And yet – Alucard would go on to say the thing that would shock you the most.

“Keep rowing.”

The three of you looked at him in disbelief.

That’s… not what you were expecting of him. At all.

Perhaps the fact that, up until now, Alucard had been kind to you in ways that no other person ever were made you get a wrong image of him. A… softer image. You thought he wouldn’t refuse help to anyone, ever. You… didn’t expect his heart could be cold like that.

“Are you just going to leave them behind?” You blurted out before you could control yourself – and immediately regretted it.

Alucard didn’t look exactly angry; his face had the nonchalant expression you were getting used to. Yet, the way he slightly furrowed his brows made you shiver. I should’ve stayed shut, you reprimanded yourself. What right do I have to ask him to put himself in danger for anyone when I myself am pretty useless? What if Alucard gets angry at me? What if he starts hating me from now on?

“We don’t have time for distractions,” he replied, still rowing, still in that same controlled voice.

“But there are people in that village,” Annette argued. She looked angry at Alucard. “They’ll get killed if we don’t help them!” Richter looked from her to the hung bodies back to the vampire, not moving his oar.

“They’re right. We can’t just pass them by,” the blue eyed boy agreed.

The furrow in Alucard’s face deepened.

“If we rush to rescue every distressed villager, Erzsebet will rule the whole country before we have half a chance to stop her.” For the first time, Alucard’s tone showed a bit of emotion – annoyance. But the Belmont started to row towards the margin anyway. “Richter.”

If the white-haired vampire called you using that warning tone, you would’ve stopped whatever you were doing. But Richter wasn’t scared like you. He didn’t care about Alucard’s reprimand and instead kept rowing. Alucard could’ve stopped him, could’ve argued more – but, surprising you once again, he just let out a tired sigh.

Annette and Richter got out of the boat in a jump before it even touched the margin, not caring to wet their boots, and ran into the forest.

You were frozen. Heavens, what have you started? Well, you couldn’t assume that the other two wouldn’t act even if you stayed shut, but you were the first to speak up anyway. What if Alucard was angry at you? You wouldn’t be helpful anyway, so why did you even open your mouth?

Being alone with him for those brief seconds was like torture. You avoided his gaze, already feeling sweat forming on your temples, waiting for some sort of punishment.

But Alucard let out another tired sigh.

When he got up, you had no choice but to look at him. Indeed, he didn’t look angry. Just tired.

“Let’s get this over with, then.” He murmured more to himself than to you.

It was so quick that your brain didn’t properly register what was happening.

His arm got around your waist, forcing you to get up in a firm grip, gluing your back on his torso as if you didn’t weigh more than a watermelon. Then, you saw a red glow spread from his body to yours–

And you didn’t see anything anymore.

For a split second, you thought you got blind.

No, it wasn’t that–

Alucard was moving so fast that your eyes couldn’t distinguish what the hell they were seeing.

Everything became a blur. You heard the shuffle of leaves, wind howling on your ears– and then, you weren’t on the boat anymore, but deep within the forest – surrounded by vampires.

Your stomach dropped. The world spun around. Alucard carried you under his arm like someone carries a dog, your feet weren’t even touching the ground anymore.

The vampires looked as shocked as you, at least.

All of them launched at Alucard at the same moment he unsheathed his long sword.

Instinctively, you covered your head with your hands (as if it’d do much) while the white-haired vampire swung his sword around – and then everything became an incomprehensible cacophony of steel against steel, flesh being slashed and pierced, groans of effort and pain. Alucard was ridiculously superior to any of them; they were less of a threat than the guards at Erzebet’s chateau.

When the clearing had nothing but mutilated corpses, he did that thing again – red glow, wind swooshing, vision getting dark – and rushed to another clearing after a new group of vampires. You felt the taste of mushrooms on your tongue, but forced yourself to swallow it back, covering your mouth with both hands.

This is how a potato sack must feel, a stupid voice whispered in your head. You tried to focus your sight on anything, but Alucard moved so fast that it was impossible; sometimes he made his long cape fall over your body to confuse any attacks aimed at you, making it even more impossible to understand what was happening.

Two last enemies remained. One of them was running away. Alucard let go of his sword and the weapon flew on a beeline towards him; it impaled the vampire on a tree.

The other enemy launched itself at you, screaming in a last desperate attempt. Alucard raised you up with a single arm to get you out of danger’s line, his hand on your back as if you were quite literally a tray, and kicked the vampire on the stomach with such force that you were sure that you heard his spine breaking apart; the man shocked against one, two, three trees, destroying them on his way, before Alucard’s obedient flying sword landed the finishing blow.

And you were alone.

Only then Alucard put you on the floor.

“I think that was all,” he said – once again to himself, not to you – and held his sword. He didn’t show a sign of fatigue or… anything. Not even his hair was disheveled, as if it was magical like his sword and each strand could simply go back to its place. “Let’s see if the others finished–“

He interrupted himself when he saw your position – bent over, one hand on your stomach and the other covering your mouth.

“...Are you oka–“ He was about to ask – showing the most emotion up until then – but you lifted your finger at him.

“J-Just give me a–“ don’t vomit don’t vomit don’t vomit don’t vomit– “A second. Please.”

Surprisingly, Alucard obeyed.

You breathed slowly, in and out, focusing every fiber of your being into not throwing up. We don’t have time for that, you repeated like a mantra. When you felt the nausea fading away, you straightened your back and brushed the dust off your skirt, turning to him.

“Please, the next time you do that,” you said in a weak, breathless voice, as if you were the one relentlessly fighting vampires a second ago, “I’d like to know first.”

Alucard looked speechless at first, then you saw the ghost of a smile on his lips – oh, of course he finds my state quite funny, as if it wasn’t humiliating enough. He opened his mouth to say something–

A sharp pain on the left side of your face.

You stumbled back in pure shock.

You hadn’t noticed the trap in front of you – a deep hole on the ground covered by a carpet of leaves, some sort of trap for wolves, perhaps. From said hole, a vampire jumped up, launching himself in the air, his nails sharper than any knife and now covered with your blood.

The world moved in slow motion for maybe three seconds. You saw the man’s devious smile – he was probably so proud of himself for fooling both of you; his hiss made your skin crawl. You were his target. His landing trajectory was you, and his nails were once again ready to hurt you.

He never had the time.

The world was still moving in slow motion when Alucard sliced him in half. You watched in grotesque precision as the sharp blade cut through the skin of his stomach, his flesh, his guts, his spine. The cocky smile never faded away. The vampire didn’t even have time to realize he was dying.

Everything went back to its normal speed. You didn’t want to look at the body hitting the ground.

You stumbled two more steps back, instinctively touching your left cheek with your fingertips and wincing in pain. Hell. These weren’t just cuts – felt more like gashes. You realized that you couldn’t open your left eye anymore. Blood dripped down your face.

Wounds like that weren’t anything out of the ordinary. They hurt, yes – but you felt, at most, annoyed. How did you let yourself get hurt like that, even after all of Alucard’s efforts in keeping you safe?

And yet – your mind was silenced when you felt the gentle touch of a gloved hand.

With his left hand, Alucard lifted your chin; with his right hand and the utmost care, he pressed a handkerchief over your wounds.

“This looks bad.” His quiet, husky voice dripped with worry. His forehead was tense, his jaw was tightened. He made you turn your head slightly to get a better vision of the gashes before pressing the soft fabric over them once again. With the corner of your good eye, you noticed that he hadn’t sheathed the sword back in; now it floated near your body like a watchdog.

Maybe it was the embarrassment of getting hurt in front of him, or the fact that he was standing so close and holding your face with such care, or his unwavering gaze – or it was a mix of everything that made heat creep from your neck to your cheeks.

“I’m sorry. I should’ve been more careful.” You held your breath; his tone was still quiet and gentle, yet you noticed the hint of anger in his voice; such anger wasn’t directed at you, however.

You couldn’t process that situation very well.

Alucard said I’m sorry. Not many people had said I’m sorry to you, as far as you remembered. And he sounded sorry.

You pressed your lips together. Why was he even sorry? Didn’t he already know that no injury was serious enough to you?

“It’s okay, Alucard,” you said sheepishly. If you had the courage, you’d have rested your hand over his wrist, but you gripped the fabric of the skirt instead. “I’ll heal.” And fast, as you already felt the familiar tingling sensation spread around the entire left side of your face.

“I know,” was all he said. He kept patting your wounds slowly, absorbing the blood with the handkerchief.

You didn’t know how much longer you could hold his piercing gaze. You gulped. “I-I guess the bleeding already stopped,” you stuttered, desperate for him to step back – and not because you didn’t like his touch, but because it was too overwhelming and you didn’t know how to physically deal with it.

Alucard distanced the fabric from your face. He hummed, analyzing the gashes once again, coming to the conclusion that the bleeding had stopped indeed. However, instead of distancing himself or letting go of your chin, he turned the handkerchief to the side that still wasn’t soaked; you held your breath when you felt his hand press on your jaw, on your chin, then on your neck – cleaning the blood that had dripped.

That heat spread to every corner of your body. You felt about to explode.

Only after he finished did he step away – not before making you still hold the handkerchief over your left cheek.

He looked so, so sorry.

It was the first time Alucard showed an expression that wasn’t subtle.

And for some reason, it made it hard to breathe.

You won’t get hurt, he told you back at the chateau. I mean it, he reinforced in the woods.

Oh… you got it.

Alucard probably felt like he broke his promise to you – even though that wasn’t exactly a promise.

“It’ll be healed in no time,” you repeated, hating how high pitched your voice sounded. You wanted him to stop worrying so much at that moment; you needed to avert his attention elsewhere. “We… we should go after the others.”

The white-haired vampire still hesitated, his gaze lingering on you for a while longer before nodding. “Let’s go.” When he said this, you almost sighed in relief.

He walked very close to you this time, his hand behind your back without exactly touching, acting more as a guide. The long sword still floated closer to you than to him.

The warmth of his touch, even through the leather gloves, was comforting; his movements much slower now compared to how they were minutes ago as he ruthlessly slashed vampires without struggle. It was even impressive how he could switch like that. Now, he moved around with the care of someone holding a scared kitten.

You didn’t know how to feel.

On one side, you liked it. Heavens, how could you not? When was the last time anyone had touched you with such care? You’d always associated vampires with violence and brute force… yes, Alucard could fight ruthlessly, and imagining him as your foe was frightening. But at the same time, he could be considerate, his touch as light as a feather, his hunting tiger eyes changing to worried ones in the blink of an eye. How could you not be… flattered by that?

On the other side, you wanted to dig a hole on the ground and hide there forever. You were beyond embarrassed – embarrassed because you got hurt in front of him, embarrassed that he was paying so much attention to you, embarrassed because Alucard was in a hurry (understandably) and he shouldn’t waste his time caring about the injury of someone that couldn’t take care of herself… and embarrassed because you liked the attention, even though you shouldn’t.

The pain of your wounds was nothing compared to your confused feelings.

When you found the other two after a short walk, your left eye had already reopened, although your vision was still blurry.

Annette held blades on both hands. She had a focused expression, but when she saw you, her eyes widened and she was about to run towards you. Richter also looked worried. Immediately, you lifted your hand; just Alucard was enough, you didn’t need anyone else focusing on you.

“Don’t worry! It’s nothing.” You tried your best to sound somewhat cheerful. See? It’s not so bad. It doesn’t even hurt. Don’t worry about me, please, don’t worry about me.

The amount of blood on the handkerchief – previously white, now completely red – made it hard to believe, even though you were hiding the wounds very well. Alucard looked at you with the corner of his eye, letting a glimpse of his worry pass through, before falling into the usual nonchalance.

“I think I killed all of them,” he stated. “None left to report back to Erzsebet.”

Any worries Richter might’ve had for you disappeared in a second. His shoulders fell down, his eyes dropped – and you immediately remembered what happened yesterday. Oh no. Tension bubbled up within your stomach. Annette sent a worried gaze from the Belmont boy to the vampire.

Unfortunately, Alucard noticed. “What?”

Richter sighed, realizing there was no way out of this. He turned to Alucard. “Yesterday, when we were fighting vampires…”

The white-haired man frowned. That simple action was enough to send shivers down your spine.

“...I might’ve given our destination away.” Richter confessed – embarrassed, hesitant. He closed his eyes for a second, as if he couldn’t bear to look at Alucard. “I was just–“

“Showing off. As usual.”

Another freezing cold shiver.

Alucard’s voice wasn’t loud – much the opposite. Low, raspy, similar to a hiss. It was the second time that day that you’d seen him show an emotion that wasn’t subtle.

“I’m sorry. It was stupid, I wasn’t thinking.” The Belmont boy very clearly felt the weight of embarrassment get heavier over his shoulders.

“No, you weren’t. You don’t.” Heavens – Alucard wasn’t even talking to you, yet you almost had the reflex of flinching away from him. It was the first time he used that tone. It was the first time he showed genuine, unclouded anger.

And it scared you.

Maybe not because it was him, but because your past captors taught you that anger meant punishment – and it was burned in your soul in a way that not even your healing condition could deal with.

“What’s done is done, Alucard,” Annette intervened in a defensive manner, perhaps because she thought that it could evolve into something worse. “Let’s just get moving.”

Obviously, Alucard knew she was right. You saw something in him – something that he surely kept very well hidden most of the time – that made you think that, perhaps, he was a stubborn person. Perhaps he was someone that didn’t like to back down when he felt he was right.

But then his eyes quickly paused on you. Maybe you were seeing too much, wanting to be more important than you actually were, and the other two definitely didn’t notice it. But you saw the way his eyes traveled from the bloody handkerchief pressed against your wound, or maybe he saw your expression – and that made him… give up.

Alucard simply let an irritated groan escape, sheathed his sword and walked towards the margin, not far from where you were.

You almost sighed in relief. A fight was the thing you needed the least right now.

While you watched Alucard’s tall figure distance himself, Richter expressed a little “thank you” towards Annette. She smiled, shrugging, before approaching you and resting her hand over your shoulder.

“Are you really okay?” she asked. It seemed that she wanted to take a look at your wounds, but you refused uncover them.

“Yes. It was just an accident.” Again, you faked a somewhat cheerful tone. “It’s already healing, so don’t worry. Really.”

Annette still looked hesitant, but ended up nodding anyway, making her way towards the boat.

Richter didn’t move at all. His fists were tightened, his eyes were down. Again, you couldn’t help but notice how his muscular body made such a contrast with his child-like features. He… looked like a boy. His round blue eyes were clouded by regret, embarrassment and a hint of sadness.

It brought forward a feeling you didn’t know you had. An… instinct.

“Don’t dwell too much on it,” you didn’t know where the courage to speak came from, but there you were anyway, your voice quiet in a tone you didn’t recognize. “He’s angry. It’ll pass.”

Even Richter seemed surprised at your words. He massaged the back of his neck and somehow managed to open a small smile before nodding.

“Let’s… get going,” it seemed he didn’t know what to reply. As you started to walk side by side, Richter eyed the left side of your face. “...You have a pretty high pain tolerance. I’m a bit jealous.”

You couldn’t help but let a light chuckle pass your lips.

And yet, your sudden reaction lingered in your mind for a while. The way you hated to see that boy looking even remotely sad. The way you found the words to try to comfort him, even though you usually struggled to speak most of the time.

...Could that be a memory, too?

You were used to feeling small.

It had nothing to do with height. Your captors made you feel small, minuscule, insignificant, for as long as you could remember. That wasn’t news. That was, in fact, ingrained in your brain in complicated ways.

And yet, Paris made you feel even smaller.

Not because you were being harassed this time, but because it was so big and there were so many buildings and there were so many people that you felt the size of a grain of salt.

You weren’t used to that.

You abandoned the boat a few hours before dawn. Two more hours of walking and finally, the first buildings peeked in the distance. The city was just waking up with the first rays of sunlight, and yet it was already flooding with people.

Too many people.

You didn’t know a city could have so many people. You didn’t know buildings could be that tall. You didn’t know a place could be so noisy. There were kids running around and carriages passing by and stray dogs barking at you (you almost peed yourself) and people selling bread and fruits on the sidewalks and there was a mother running after her son and a group of old ladies chatted very loud and there was a man wearing a monk cloak preaching something with a book in his hand and oh- the boy that was running from his mother almost got run over by a horse but the rider stopped it in time and cursed him using very bad names and the mother cursed the rider back using very bad names and the boy started crying–

A hand rested on top of yours. You gasped. It was Annette.

“I was asking if you were hungry,” she said, but by the look on her face you realized that you were doing it again, you were spiraling again in an embarrassing way – and worst, in front of all these people. You gulped and hid your shaking hands behind your back.

“N-No.” You were, in fact, hungry, but you didn’t know what you were saying at that point.

No one was convinced.

“Shouldn’t we rush to find the mummy?” Richter said – but after he finished that sentence, his stomach audibly growled. The Belmont boy blushed. Annette giggled. The white-haired vampire sighed.

“I suppose we should rest for a while. We made our way without any breaks, after all,” he said and put his hand in the inside pocket of his jacket, taking a small brown pouch from there. It tinkled with coins. He placed the pouch on Annette’s hand. “You two, get us something to eat. I’ll be waiting with Ruby at the square.”

Annette still asked if you wanted to eat something specific, to which you once again replied mumbling some nonsense. Richter looked visibly relieved to be away from Alucard, at least for a while. They made their way towards a fair around the corner.

Alucard touched your back softly. You instinctively flinched.

“It’s over there,” he pointed ahead with his chin. Indeed, you could see a great square at the end of the crowded street. You nodded.

Alucard walked in a calm stride, and you tried to match his pace, even though your heart pounded violently. Your nerves wanted you to run. Everything was so loud and chaotic. Even the pigeons were noisy. You tried your best to not cross eyes with anyone – especially with the many men wearing red, blue and white uniforms, holding bayonets over their shoulders.

You felt that you stood out in the middle of the crowd. Your deep blue gown apparently was not a very fitting attire to wear on the streets, even though it wasn’t as puffy or long as it used to be. Women wore much simpler dresses. You felt their gazes over you and it made you want to disappear. If you had a vampire’s ability to turn into a tiny bat, hell, you’d use that ability right now to fly away from all these people.

A hand rested on your arm.

You gasped a bit when you realized Alucard was gently pulling you close to him before a man could bump into you. Your shoulder pressed against his body.

The stranger seemed about to say something mean, but then he looked from you to Alucard’s frown and gulped. “My apologies, ma’am,” he stuttered with an awkward smile, but Alucard kept guiding you ahead instead.

Oh.

His sudden proximity to you cut the cacophony of the street for some moments.

Finally, the street opened to a large square with a big fountain in the center and multiple wooden benches scattered around it. As it had more space, it appeared less crowded. Groups of pigeons flew away as you approached one of the only empty benches closer to the fountain. You sat down, Alucard at your left side.

The sound of the water gushing in the fountain muffled the other noises, helping you calm down a bit, but not nearly enough. You nervously gripped the fabric of the skirt and shook your leg nonstop, the heel tapping on the stone pavement audibly. There were still too many people. Still too many noises. Still too much attention–

“Look. There’s a rainbow.”

You eyed Alucard, finding his sudden observation strange. He sat with crossed legs and hands resting over his lap in a tranquil position that matched his expression. He pointed forward towards the fountain, clearly not wanting you to look at him at that moment.

And so you did.

The fountain was probably three meters tall, with four sculptures of women holding jars from where the water fell towards a pool. Indeed, as sun rays hit the water, a small colorful rainbow was reflected on the small droplets around it.

“Y-Yes,” you stuttered.

Alucard hummed. His voice was even calmer than usual. “Now, close your eyes. Listen to the water.”

You still found it strange, but did it anyway. With no more visual stimuli, you could focus on the sound of the flowing water. It flowed, nonstop, a sound familiar and somehow comforting; after a while, it muffled all the other sounds, the voices and conversations and steps. It enveloped you in a bubble of… peace.

Your leg wasn’t shaking anymore.

Finally, you opened your eyes again, your breathing back to normal.

Alucard now had his arms crossed. He looked at nothing in particular. “All these people are too absorbed in their own lives,” his husky voice was as soft as velvet. “They don’t care about you, so don’t worry about them.”

You nodded.

In that moment… Alucard was like a cold spot next to you. But not in a bad way. Everything else was too hot, too uncomfortable; he was like the cold breeze you needed to refresh.

Sheepishly, you looked down at your hands resting over your lap. “I’ve… never been in such a crowded place.”

Alucard nodded. “You get used to it after a while.”

Silence lingered between you. It wasn’t uncomfortable now, though.

“Oh! I’m sorry about your handkerchief,” you extended the apology you didn’t want to say in front of the others. “I tried to wash it, but… it didn’t work.”

The white-haired vampire chuckled softly. “It’s alright. Blood stains aren’t easily cleaned… you don’t have to apologize at all.” His small smile immediately dropped. “I should be the one to apologize again for what happened.”

You turned your body in his direction slightly, lifting your palms in an appeasing gesture. “I-It was just an accident! You don’t need to apologize again.”

“Yes, I do. You’re under my responsibility and I failed you.” Alucard turned to look at you for the first time. “What if you didn’t have this healing ability? You would’ve lost one eye. I think you don’t understand how serious that wound was.”

You looked down to your lap again, fiddling with your fingers nervously. “...Let’s just be glad that my body works like this, then.”

Alucard was still watching you. It made that familiar heat spread from your neck to your face all over again. He turned his body slightly on your direction, resting his arm over the back on the bench.

“How does it work? Your healing.” His voice had a new hint of interest. He pointed towards your left cheek with a subtle movement of his finger.

Instinctively, you turned your body a bit towards him as well, still avoiding his gaze.

“It… depends.” You started, frowning a little. “If it’s a light injury, it heals in seconds. If it’s more serious, it might take longer. Though… with more serious injuries, I can’t tell exactly how long it takes. I’d usually pass out and wake up the next day with everything healed.”

Oh. You didn’t want to let that last part slip.

Alucard pressed his lips for a moment. They were… glossy. Plump and delicate almost the way you’d expect to see on a woman. In fact, Alucard was a perfect balance between masculine and feminine; his features could be soft and delicate – like his lips, his long eyelashes, shiny wavy hair – but he could also be extremely masculine with his broad shoulders, muscular physique, his height, his deep voice. He was very elegant. And it wasn’t an inherently “vampiric” feature, as you hadn’t seen other vampires act like that, even the ones that claimed to be “royalty”. It was something specifically his.

The warmth in your cheeks got worse. You had to look away from him.

You inhaled, building up courage to ask what had been sitting in your mind for days. “Alucard, have you… have you ever met anyone else like me? A human that could heal?”

He looked into the distance, thoughtful. “Not exactly.” He paused for a moment, as if hesitating if he should tell you or not. “...I met a black magician once, many years ago. He sacrificed children, absorbing their youth, to keep himself alive for longer than a human should live.”

You couldn’t help but gasp. A bad feeling settled in your gut. “Did he heal like me?”

“Healing required the sacrifice of another life. An equivalent exchange. So, no.”

“...What happened to him?”

“I killed him.”

You widened your eyes. “Well, I-I don’t remember ever sacrificing children before, so…”

Alucard closed his eyes and let a light chuckle. “We can assume that’s not your case.”

Once again, you fiddled with the fabric of the dress. “Do you… have any idea of what might be my case?”

The man hummed. A soft breeze played with the locks of his hair. A few loose strands glimmered under the sun. Heavens, it was so hard to keep eye contact with him… when he was looking at you, you felt about to explode. When he wasn’t, you felt like you could stare at him for hours. And you weren’t the only one; you noticed some women walking on the square, taking quick glances at him, giggling and blushing. He was wrong in his theory that people were “too absorbed” in their lives – at least, that was not the case when it was about him.

“I can’t be sure of anything.” Alucard started, holding his chin. “There are a few theories I thought of. You might’ve made a pact with a demon to keep you alive in exchange of something it wanted you to do. You might be channeling your life force from someone else, like the black magician did. You might even be like me… a dhampir, how scholars call my kind. Half-human, half-vampire. Yet, that might most definitely not be the case, as you lack all vampiric features or needs.”

You gulped. All of his suppositions sounded equally bad.

“Are there other dhampirs?” You decided to avert his attention from you for a minute.

Alucard shook his head slowly. “No.” He narrowed his eyes only slightly. “And I am almost certain that there can’t be others like me. I was only conceived because my father was especially powerful… and he had the means to keep my mother alive throughout pregnancy.” He frowned in a subtle disgusted expression. “...I have seen others trying to replicate my existence with human women. It… never ends well to them or the babies.”

Although his last sentence was horrifying, you felt a little bit excited; Alucard barely ever talked about himself… and he just talked about his father, Dracula. The strange name that seemed to evoke something familiar in you.

Hell. You wanted to ask him. You didn’t even know exactly what to ask, and you didn’t even know if Alucard would want to talk about his father. As Richter said, Dracula was the man that almost wiped out mankind, and Alucard had to stop him… had to kill him. That couldn’t be an easy topic to talk about. How do you even approach this conversation?!

But at the same time, “Dracula” seemed to be the most important memory you had retrieved up until now. It could provide answers.

“We could also scratch the ‘channeling life force from another source’, too, if we consider that you feel tired when healing from serious injuries,” Alucard kept on talking, unaware of your internal struggle. “If you feel tired, it means you’re utilizing your own force.”

And then, you were shaking your leg again. “So… pact with a demon it is. Sounds lovely,” you didn’t want to sound that nervous, but you couldn’t help it.

Alucard chuckled. It was… nice to see him like that. Not so aloof. Smiles, even tiny ones, looked great on him.

“As I said, they’re only theories. Don’t dwell too much on suppositions. We’ll find out the truth, sooner or later.”

A moment of silence lingered.

“What if… I am actually someone evil?” You wondered quietly. “I have no idea of who I was before her. So… that’s a possibility.”

Alucard took a while to answer.

“I have lived for long enough to understand that good and evil are not simple concepts.” He was using that tone again – the quiet, reassuring one. A tone that meant comfort, but in that moment, it also meant wisdom, perhaps wisdom beyond your comprehension. “No one is entirely evil. No one is entirely good. Even vampires. Sometimes, evil and good are completely intertwined. One might do evil deeds for a good cause or the opposite. It is… very broad and subjective.”

Finally, you lifted your gaze to look at him.

“And what do you think is my case?”

Once again, Alucard took some seconds to answer.

The arm that rested over the back of the bench approached your face, which caused your heartbeat to increase; he moved slowly like he did before – moving around a scared kitten. His fingers came close to your head; his touch, almost unnoticeable. He took a little leaf that was hidden between your strands with his fingertips.

Why such a mundane action made all of your insides twirl around like that?

“I’m not sure of your past,” he admitted quietly. “But I am sure of what I see right now; and in this moment, you’re not someone capable of evil. And this, to me, is enough.”

You… couldn’t really breathe.

Couldn’t really look away.

Suddenly, he was also inside your little bubble of peace. There were only the sounds of the fountain, the sunlight… and his golden eyes. Nothing else existed. His presence emanated tranquility, certainty, solace… and something else that you didn’t know how to name. The same thing that made warmth spread through your body anytime he was kind, anytime he smiled, anytime he took care of you somehow.

It felt like you had fallen into a spell. A sweet one. It had an ambrosial smell, a honeyed taste. You didn’t want to break away from it. Not this time.

You opened your mouth, thinking of what to say – anything, any word, but nothing came; you were frozen, breathless, speechless–

“We brought croissants!”

The bubble popped.

You snapped your head to the side. Annette held a basket with bread and Richter held a bottle.

“They’re fresh off the oven,” Annette said with a satisfied smile.

“And I got apple juice. It wasn’t easy to get, so please, appreciate it,” Richter boasted before sitting between you and Alucard unceremoniously.

Annette sat by your right side, handing you a croissant and frowning at him. “He fought an elder man to buy it. It wasn’t very gentleman-ly of you.”

“What? He skipped the queue! I was right. Besides, we need it more than he does,” Richter defended himself with a pout.

The other two kept humorously arguing, but you weren’t really listening to them, trying to calm your heart instead.

You looked at Alucard with the corner of your eye.

For the first time ever since you met, he averted his gaze from you… and it made another question mark pop in your head; this question mark, however, wasn’t as dark as the others.

...Could it be that Alucard felt the spell, too?

A/N: someone sent me an ask on tumblr that put a question mark in my head. They weren't sure if the fic was a self-insert or if Ruby was a separate character from "reader". If anybody else is confused, yess, this is a self-insert, I am calling you RUBY and this will be your new LEGAL NAME from now on, don't argue with me. (jokes aside - I thought this was pretty clear :( hope no one else is confused, and I hope that this detail doesn't make the fic unreadable to you!) As usual, feedback is MUCH MUCH MUCHHH APPRECIATED!!!! This girl put out 4 chapters, 20k words in like ten days. cough cough I do feel like I deserve it 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️ 💞💞💞

[recurringwriter]

Twenty Questions for Fic Writers

tagged by @demial4! thanks for thinking of me! went with this blog since it's the more main one aksdjgh

1) how many works do you have on ao3?

sitting at 109! i never saw that one coming, i'll be real

2) what's your total ao3 word count?

961,632!!!!!!! my goal is to get to 1 million words this year, should be doable [imagine a super flustered blushing emoji here]. i just need to work on any of the longfics i'm stuck in the middle of.

3) what are your top five fics by kudos?

this is why i chose this blog--it's all f/ire /emblem:

say it with swords - felix/sylain/bernadetta/annette this diminuendo only gets obscene - rodrigue/manuela (my best series) i know i never make this easy - arospec felix coming out to rodrigue is it bad enough to call it off - i think this is the rodrigue & annette fic Hate to let you down - this whopper is my first fic. the Eh-U

4) what fandoms do you write for?

mainly 🔥emb/lem and i'm now expanding into the finalled fantasy, which is a series i've never played myself. but i'm greatly enjoying learning about it! i also have 1 monster hunter fic and i'd love to write some weird crossover stuff for old book series no one has ever heard of.

5) do you respond to comments? why or why not?

i try!!! but sometimes i am overcome and don't know what to say, and then put it off, and then feel silly to answer months later and so i never do. trust me it haunts me. i'm always so grateful for comments.

6) what's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

it was whatever doesn't make me stronger kills me which i hated for a long time (it's not bad just not to my taste). very ambiguous what happens to sylvain in that one. but then i added a chapter because my beloved fave band released a new album. i still have to add an end proper. since then it's probably anything in the divorce au where i explained the absence of felix's mom. SORRY i just remembered I love you, sincerely, yours truly, yours truly. weird time travel sci-fi sylvain/ingrid.

7) what's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

this is really hard because i like open endings that don't feel like endings, or softly happy endings, so they all feel 'quieter' than i might imagine most happy ends. but nothing is like it was, there's nobody here but us (eh-u, rodrigue introducing felix to manuela) is really positive. then there's Rodfic #50: Something in Which to Believe, which i wrote to cheer myself up. rodrigue/reader.

8) do you get hate on fics?

i had the ghost of anne rice comment on a fic but otherwise people have been extremely nice! i'm very grateful.

9) do you write smut?

😏 i actually was writing smut when i was tagged in this

10) do you write crossovers?

yessss i love crossovers!!!! i don't typically do very long ones, they're sort of like the pilot episode of a longer series that never gets aired. but i thoroughly enjoy them.

11) have you ever had a fic stolen?

okay so i don't Believe it was stolen. but i was browsing tags and saw something with Extremely Similar concept to one of my fics and was like. the likelihood that this is stolen is So Low because my fic has under 90 hits. but i was Shocked when i read it.

12) have you ever had a fic translated?

not at this point!

13) have you ever cowritten a fic before?

sort of! i have two co-written fics in progress both are smut and very often share as i write with a friend or friends!

14) what's your all time favourite ship?

suuper hard question because i throw any characters i can into the brig together to see what happens. but probably Rodriguela has the highest spot for being the first one i acted insane about.

15) what's the wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

i'm sort of doubtful i'll ever finish wildfire just because it keeps growing. but i'd love to. my felicity-adopts-sephiroth au has also hit an unfortunate wall and i lost all momentum, but i would really like to finish that one.

16) what are your writing strengths?

i have a huge ego so we could be here all day. dialogue, fight scenes, humour are my favourites though.

17) what are your writing weaknesses?

describing um. clothing. aaaaaaaaaaaa or deciding what characters should eat. don't make me!!! go read a redwall or something if you want food

18) thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

i'd probably say 'he said in french that they should go see the hockey match' rather than write out the actual phrase. but if it were something simple i might take a crack at it. i've used fictional words in wildfire now.

19) first fandom you wrote for?

f/ire e/mblem again. it was the pandemic, i'd just gotten through claude's route, and felix was so silly. so i started the eh-u

20) favourite fic you've ever written?

this is impossible to answer because i love so many. but here's my first curling fic: steal of two

i'll tag @omgkalyppso @umbralstars @lumeha

[litcest]

William and Dorothy Wordsworth

William Wordsworth (1770–1850), is considered a pioneer of English Romanticism, having helped to inaugurate the movement with his poetry collection Lyrical Ballads (1798), co-authored with Samuel Taylor Coleridge. His sister, Dorothy Wordsworth (1771–1855), though largely unrecognized during her lifetime, posthumously gained critical acclaim for her journals, letters, and poetry.

The close emotional bond between the Wordsworth siblings has long been widely acknowledged, but some scholars and critics have gone further, speculating about the possibility of an incestuous dimension to their relationship. While such interpretations remain controversial and are widely contested by most literary historians and biographers, they continue to provoke debate within literary scholarship and raise broader questions about the boundaries of intimacy, creativity, and familial affection in the Romantic imagination.

I would like to thank user @gothicbloodlover for brining the topic to my attention.

William Wordsworth was born on April 7, 1770, to parents John Wordsworth and Ann Cookson, who already had one son named Richard, who had been born in 1768. A over  a year later, Dorothy Wordsworth was born, on December 25, 1771. Despite their eighteen month difference in age, Dorothy and William were baptized together, almost as if foreshadowing their future closeness. After Dorothy, two other children were born, John in 1772 and Christopher in 1774. 

In March 1778, Ann died and John then sent Dorothy to the care of Elizabeth Threlkel, Ann's cousin to live in Halifax, while William and the other sons stayed in Cockermouth. William and Dorothy would not see each other again until 1787, when Dorothy went to stay with their grandparents.

"Neither absence nor Distance nor Time can ever break the Chain that links me to my Brothers." (Wordsworth Early Years 88)

In December 1783, John passed away and the money and property were taken by distant family members, leaving William and his siblings with nothing.

Finally, after nine years apart, in July 1787, Dorothy would be reunited with her brothers in Penrith. Their lives, however, would not be easy, as they were mistreated by their uncles and grandparents, of whom they depended financially due to having had their inheritance stolen. In a letter to her friend Jane Pollard, Dorothy wrote:

"Many a time have Wm, J, C, and myself shed tears together, tears of the bitterest sorrow, we all of us, each day, feel more sensibly the loss we sustained when we were deprived of our parents, and each day do we receive fresh insults, you will wonder of what sort; believe me of the most mortifying kind." (Wordsworth Early Years 3)

In October 1787, William went to university in Cambridge which meant the siblings only saw each other from time to time, mostly during William's college vacations. In these occasions, William and Dorothy would often go for long walks around the hills that surrounded the family home. They were sometimes accompanied in this outings by Mary Hutchinson, Dorothy's friend that would later become William's wife. During this time, Dorothy would often help William with his poetry, not only being his muse but also editor and collaborator, and he would send her drafts while he was at college.

In 1791, William left England for France, where he met and impregnated Annette Vallon, resulting in the birth of a baby girl named Caroline. Needing an income to support his new family, William published two poems, one of which (An Evening Walk) he dedicated to Dorothy, who eagerly waited his return.

"I cannot foresee the Day of my Felicity, the Day in which I am once more to find a Home under the same Roof with my Brother". (Wordsworth Early Years 93)

Finally, in February 1794, Dorothy and William would once again be reunited in their aunt's house, before moving by themselves to a house in Keswick, which belonged to a friend of William, where they stayed the spring. They were once again separated for over an year when Dorothy went to stay with some cousins, but they still saw each other from time to time and exchanged letters.

In September 1795 they once again go to live together in another friend's house in Dorset. This time, they would stay for two years, during which they took care of young Basil Montagu, son of another friend of the siblings, and William worked on his play The Borderers.

The Wordsworth next stop was Somerset, where they stayed with William's friend and future collaborator, Samuel Coleridge. Dorothy adored the Somerset, describing it as very romantic in a letter to Mary Hutchinson.

"There is everything here; sea, woods wild as fancy ever painted, brooks clear and pebbly as in Cumberland, villages so romantic; and William and I, in a wander by ourselves, found out a sequestered waterfall in a dell." (Wordsworth Early Years 189)

During their stay with the Coleridges, Dorothy helps Samuel to revise his work, and they also became close friends, wish Samuel referring to her as his "sister" in a poem.

Dorothy and William enjoyed Somerset so much that they decided to get themselves a house there. In the summer of 1797, the siblings moved into Alfoxden House, which was located just a few miles from Coleridge's house. In Alfoxden, William and Samuel began to work on their poetry collection, Lyrical Ballads, while Dorothy wrote in her journal, that would later be published as the Alfoxden Journal.

When their lease on the house finished, they decided to go to Germany. Initially they were joined by Coleridge and John Chester, but in Hamburg the sibling split from their friends and headed to Goslar, where they lived a quiet country life for a while, a decision that Coleridge criticised in a letter to his wife.

"His taking his Sister with him was a wrong Step -- it is next to impossible for any but married women or in the suit of married women to be introduced to any company in Germany. Sister [here] is considered as only a name for Mistress." (Coleridge Collected Letters 459)

One can speculate that perhaps Coleridge was jealous of having been left behind, as he also wrote about being lonely without his friends, who in turn seemed to need him as much as he needed them.

"William, my head and my heart! dear William and dear Dorothea! You have all in each other; but I am lonely, and want you!" (Coleridge Collected Letters 452)

They were, however, homesick, and after spending the winter of 1798 in Germany, during which time William worked on The Prelude and the Lucy Poems, the Wordsworths headed back to England in April 1799, stopping by Gottingen to see Coleridge, who decided to stay in Germany for the time being.

Much speculation surrounds the identity of the muse behind the Lucy Poems. In a letter to Thomas Poole, Coleridge (Coleridge 284) mentions that at least one of the poems (A slumber did my spirit seal) were meant for Dorothy. In the poem Among all lovely things my Love had been from 1802, which William stated in a letter to Coleridge that had been inspired by Dorothy (Wordsworth EY 288), William also uses the the name Lucy, further leading credence to the theory that the Lucy of his previous compositions had been his sister.

In Wordsworth - A Re-interpretation, Bateson draws on these instances to argue that Lucy represents Dorothy, and, having established this identification, he further contends that William harboured romantic feelings for his sister. He goes on to explain that Lucy's death in the poems represent William "killing her off symbolically" (153).

"The crisis with which Wordsworth found himself confronted in 1798 was the discovery that he and Dorothy were falling in love with each other." (Bateson 153)

In England, Dorothy and William went to Mary Hutchinson's house, where they stayed until November, when they moved into their own cottage in Grasmere. In Grasmere, they were visited by their younger brother John, by Mary and by Coleridge. Dorothy returned to journaling, writing what you become known as the Grasmere Journals, while William kept working on new poems.

Lefebure, when analysing the Grasmere Journals in Samuel Taylor Coleridge: A Bondage of Opium claim that they present the story "of a woman deeply in love with a man who reciprocates her love to the full, but is forced to marry another."

"The struggle of the lovers to accept this harsh fate and the tensions arising from their struggle (tensions intensified by the fact that the frustrated pair live intimately together) result in constant physical distress, severe headaches, nausea and insomnia." (Lefebure 352)

In June 1800, Coleridge moved his family to a nearby house to stay close to his friends. Also in that region, lived another author and friend of Coleridge, Robert Southney, who may or may be not have spread rumours that Lord Byron was having an incestuous affair, this, however, is topic for another post.

Towards the end of 1801, William and Mary Hutchinson began to plan their wedding, although there was no formal engagement.

"William's feelings for his sister sometimes shaded into those for his wife-to-be." (Newlyn 163)

During the months preceding the wedding, Dorothy's emotions intensified, and her behaviour regarding William became quite dramatic. In this except, from February, she writes about missing William while he had gone on a small trip and sleeping in his bed:

"Went to about 12 o clock. I slept in Wm's bed, & I slept badlv, for my thoughts were full of William." (Wordsworth GJ 69)

Later, in March 1802, she writes about having found an apple in which he had bitten into and how she treasured it:

"O the Darling! here is one of his bitten apples! I can hardly find in my heart to throw it into the fire." (Wordsworth GJ 74)

At the same time, William's poetry also indicate his devotion to Dorothy, as he begs her to stay near him in To a Butterfly ("Stay near me—do not take thy flight! / A little longer stay in sight!" and "Float near me; do not yet depart!")

To prepare for his future as a married man, William, accompanied by Dorothy, went to France in 1802 to reach a settlement with Annette, who was still raising William's daughter. Then, on 4 October, the marriage was officiated, without Dorothy's presence, as she seemingly refused to attend:

"William had parted from me up stairs. I gave him the wedding ring—with how deep a blessing! I took it from my forefinger where I had worn it the whole of the night before—he slipped it again onto my finger and blessed me fervently." (Wordsworth GJ 126)

According to that passage, Dorothy had worn, in the previous night, the ring William intended to give to Mary in the ceremony. Then, when William returned, she went to her "beloved William & fell upon his bosom". After the marriage, Mary moved permanently into the Grasmere house, but Dorothy didn't leave William's side.

Mary quickly fell pregnant and in 18 June 1803, she gave birth to her and William's first child, John Wordsworth. In August, William, Dorothy and Coleridge departed for Scotland, while Mary stayed behind to nurse the child.

Just like how it had happened in Germany, Coleridge quickly departed from the siblings, as his aims didn't align with theirs. Upon their return in September, Dorothy wrote down her memories of the trip in Recollections of a Tour Made in Scotland, A. D. 1803.

In 16 August 1804, Mary gave birth to another child, this time a girl named Dora, who was followed by Thomas in 15 June 1806. These happy events were interspersed with tragedy, as John Wordsworth drowned in 1805. Meanwhile, Coleridge grew apart from the family, as he had developed an opium addiction. With three adults and three children, the Wordsworth cottage became quite crammed and there came the need for the family to relocate. In the summer of 1808, they moved into a new house, still located in the Lake District. Shortly after, on 6 September 1808, William's second daughter, Catherine, was born; Catherine was followed by William Jr., better known as Willy, in 12 May 1810.

The family moved houses again in 1812, this time taking Sara Hutchinson, Mary's sister, with them. In June of that year, baby Catherine died while William and Mary were away. Another tragedy followed in December, when Thomas passed away. Deciding they needed a change of air, the family relocated again Rydal Mount, where William was appointed Distributor of Stamps, a position that gave him money and some prestige.

In 1820, Dorothy, William and Mary went for a trip in Continental Europe, where they took the opportunity to visit William's French daughter, who by then had children of her own. Upon their return to England, Dorothy and Mary both wrote about their experiences, but those journals are now lost. William wrote and published Memorials of a Tour on the Continent, 1820 from the experience.

As William's fame as a poet increased, he began to grow apart from Dorothy, often going to London alone and leaving her behind with Mary, Sara and the kids.

As the siblings aged, their health began to deteriorate. In 1829, Dorothy fell very ill and almost died. Even after recovery, Dorothy was still quite fragily and needed Dora's help most of the days. Of the experience, William wrote:

"Were She to depart the Phasis of my Moon would be robbed of light to a degree that I have not courage to think of." (Wordsworth LY ii 69)

Another bout of illness hit her in 1831, leaving her even more debilitated. William, meanwhile, kept travelling around the British Isles and the Continent, often thinking of his sister:

"How I wish you could have gone with us; but I shall think of you every where, and often shall we talk of you." (Wordsworth LY iii 373)

In July 1834, Coleridge died, causing great grief to the Wordsworth siblings. His death was followed by that of Sara, in 1835. Dorothy's mental condition further deteriorated, showing signs of dementia. By 1838, her letters and journals stopped, or at least we have no further register of them. During all this time, Dorothy continued living with William, who did his best to take care of her, often reading poems to her.

"To the end of his life, Dorothy remained William's beloved sister, his ideal reader, and muse, the person to whom above all others he dedicated his poetry." (Newlyn 295)

In 1847, Dora died due to tuberculosis. Then, in 1850, William himself died. Mary kept tending to Dorothy until Dorothy's death in 1855, where upon she was buried next to William.

To address some of the works used throughout this essay: F.W. Bateson's Wordsworth: A Re-interpretation remains a highly contested work. As Reiman comments in The Poetry of Familiarity: Wordsworth, Dorothy, and Mary Hutchinson, the book "created a minor scandal" (142) with its suggestion of incest, as Bateson's book was some of the first serious academic publication to make such a claim against Wordsworth. Despite dismissing much of Bateson's rhetoric, Reiman ponders that perhaps William often wrote of him and Dorothy as children due to his need remind himself of his kinship to her and to their briefly shared childhood.

"[He] needed constantly to reinforce this sense of kinship with Dorothy, reminding himself (probably subconsciously) that Dorothy was unacceptable as the object of a romantic or sexual attachment" (Reiman 158).

In Johnston's Hidden Wordsworth: Poet, Lover, Rebel, Spy, the author claims that it was "hard to believe that the possibility was not often on their minds, whether as a temptation or a threat".

However, in 30 Great Myths About the Romantics, Wu dismisses all of those claims, pointing out that there's no evidence of a physical affair and one can't know what lurks in the subconsciousness of others, especially considering that William and Dorothy were long dead when those authors attempted to psychoanalyse them.

Indeed, it is difficult, if not impossible, for modern readers to fully comprehend the nature of a sibling relationship that unfolded in the 19th century, given the vastly different cultural norms and familial dynamics of the time. In an era when women were largely prohibited from having having careers, it was common for brothers to take care of their unmarried sisters.

The fact that accusations of incest only emerged posthumously, and not during William and Dorothy Wordsworth’s lifetimes, is itself significant as it indicates that, at the time, their relationship wasn't perceived as out of the ordinary.

"Before we were taught to see through Freud's distorting lens, such relationships were not only commonplace but also held up for admiration." (Barker 232)

References:

Barker, Juliet. Wordsworth: A Life. Penguin, 2001

Bateson, F.W. Wordsworth: A Re-interpretation. Longmans, Green, 1956.

Coleridge, Samuel Taylor. Collected Letters of Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Clarendon Press, 1956.

Gill, Stephen. William Wordsworth: A Life. Oxford UP, 1989.

Johnston, K. R. The Hidden Wordsworth: Poet, Lover, Rebel, Spy. W. W. Norton, 1998.

Lefebure, Molly. Samuel Taylor Coleridge: A Bondage of Opium. Quartet, 1974.

Newlyn, Lucy. William and Dorothy Wordsworth: “All in each other.” OUP Oxford, 2013.

Reiman, Donald H. "The Poetry of Familiarity: Wordsworth, Dorothy, and Mary Hutchinson." The Evidence of the Imagination: Studies of Interactions Between Life and Art in English Romantic Literature, edited by Donald H. Reiman, Michael C. Jaye, and Betty T. Bennett, New York UP, 1978, pp. 142–77.

Wilson, Frances. The Ballad of Dorothy Wordsworth: A Life. Macmillan + ORM, 2009.

Wordsworth, Dorothy. The Grasmere Journals. Oxford University Press, 1993.

Wordsworth, William &. Dorothy. The Letters of William and Dorothy Wordsworth: Volume I. the Early Years 1787-1805. Clarendon Press, 1967.

Wordsworth, William &. Dorothy. The Letters of William and Dorothy Wordsworth:The Later Years, 1821—53. Clarendon Press, 1978-88.

Worthen, John. The Life of William Wordsworth: A Critical Biography. John Wiley and Sons, 2014.

Wu, Duncan. 30 Great Myths About the Romantics. John Wiley and Sons, 2015.