(for cryptsleeper)

[miraclewhip]

[ He remembers- maybe about half of what happened last night. A little more, perhaps. He remembers the comments that initiated the fight. Vaguely remembers being dragged back to the inn. Remembers throwing cold water on his face to wake himself up to do the terrible fucking job of stitching himself back up that he found himself with this morning (if there was ever a chance to keep that fucking cut from scarring, well, he's gone and botched it).

And he remembers telling the fucking vampire things that he probably should not have told the fucking vampire. He doesn't remember the specifics but he knows that he said too much. More than he's told anyone in a decade maybe. All for the sake of a petty victory that he doesn't even remember if he achieved.

He's uncharacteristically quiet today, even for being as hungover as he is. He forces the almost-solid porridge down his throat when it's pushed in front of him. He drinks half the water that he was using to wash himself last night and pours the other half over his head to wake himself up after maybe an hour of sleep. He only interrupts Sypha's long, long 'discussion' when she stares at him for an indication that he's still awake. It's after that that he's dismissed to the back of the wagon, either because Sypha can't stand his presence right now or because she doesn't trust him not to fall off and end up tangled under its wheels.

(Can't blame her, being tangled up under the wheels of a wagon sounds better than being in his own head right now, even without the throbbing pain.)

He doesn't sleep, mostly because he's been told not to and he is, even more uncharacteristically, on his best behavior right now. The day is mostly uneventful until sometime in the afternoon, when a particularly foolish highwayman sees a wagon driven by a single speaker woman and tries to take advantage of the situation. He's driven off within moments, of course, harmlessly to both them and himself, and the worst that happens is that the horses are startled by Sypha's display and the wagon lurches to one side, knocking Trevor onto his side against the wooden floor. It's only after everything has been confirmed okay, once the horses are calm and they're moving again, that he places a hand to his lower chest. ]

Fuck.

[ It's warm. And damp. He's gone and opened his shitty stitches, hasn't he? ]

Comments

[cryptsleeper]

Hm. [Alucard shakes his head slowly at that, because Trevor's right, but is he right for the correct reasons?] Lying to my parents was never successful, so I saw little point in the attempt.

[You try lying to Dracula, okay? It doesn't work. Ever.

IS IT NOT TREVOR?]

[miraclewhip]

Here I thought you were just too honest for your own good.

[ He laughs. ]

Turns out you just can't be arsed learning a new skill.

[cryptsleeper]

That's a much more generous interpretation than I expected from you. The first part, at least.

[Either way, there's an eyeroll that Trevor may or may not see, depending on the angle he's at.]

It wasn't a skill I needed to have, and there were more important things at the time.

[miraclewhip]

Well, you have time now. And you've run out of nails to count. May as well spend the next few days practicing.

[ And it's time to get revenge for that 'I don't care' Trevor impression from earlier. ]

'I'm NOT a pompous, dramatic piece of shit. And I mind my own fucking business and let my friends drink whatever the fuck they please.' That kind of thing

[cryptsleeper]

Oh yes, because I'm going to use this skill so much for the remainder of my life.

[There's some offense in that remark (mostly because Alucard resembles it), but otherwise he just takes it. On bad impressions, fair is absolutely fair.]

That's too big a lie to start with. Smaller and more believable.

[miraclewhip]

You're going to get more use out of it than out of how many nails are in this thing.

[ You know what? It's time for more revenge. ]

'I absolutely would appreciate the view.'

[cryptsleeper]

I'm not certain I agree but and--

[No. He already made it weird with that. Trevor doesn't get revenge for it too.]

Ugh. Would you settle for all of it are going to get out of this alive?

[miraclewhip]

Good. I like that one.

[ He looks back for a second, at Sypha tugging at the reins of the horses. Probably still fuming at the both of them. ]

Say it again. Louder. So she can hear it.

[cryptsleeper]

Right now if I say it loudly it'll just sound like sarcasm. Or that we're still bickering.

[The best thing would be to stop at the night, and for Sypha to see the actual miracle of two stubborn idiots not tearing each other apart.]

Later tonight.

[miraclewhip]

I suppose now I have to trust that that one was the truth.

[ It is. He knows it is. He sighs, looking upward. ]

What are your conclusions, then? I don't doubt you've been respecting my privacy more than I have yours [ Because really if he didn't have a damn good reason for keeping a close eye on Alucard, Trevor would be a fucking stalker. ], but you must have some.

[cryptsleeper]

Unlike you, I actually think about how things sound before I say them.

[With one or two exceptions, as already experienced.

Alucard shifts a little bit, readjusting his position, recrossing his legs, stretching out just a little bit more. He's stiff, his legs are asleep, and his hands feel too idle now. It buys him a few moments to formulate an answer.]

Beyond the fact that I noticed your endless observations mean that we'll at least be able to do some real damage? [Trevor you are not going to like this.] You've spent too much time alone, and that means no one earns trust unless they demonstrate they're worthy of it time and again. You don't stay in one place for very long, so it's impossible for you to ever rely on anyone but yourself. But you want it that way, because your self-reliance is a comfort. Makes everything else easier. And you're only tolerating this because, as you've already demonstrated, you're fine with dying. This enterprise is just different than how you expected it to go.

[miraclewhip]

[ He listens. And he opens his mouth to argue, then closes it again. ]

About right. The plan was drowning in a ditch somewhere. This shit- this shit at least might mean something. Tie up loose ends. Maybe- maybe undo the whole excommunication thing.

[ He doesn't give a shit where he goes, but his family deserve to be able to move on and rest in peace. And as long as all of them are excommunicated, they can't. ]

No conclusions about how you'd kill me yet? Or would you just leave me unattended to do it myself?

[cryptsleeper]

Seems to me like you were exceedingly good at avoiding ditches, given you hadn't found one before you met Sypha. Not on purpose, but some deeper sense of self preservation.

[He had survival instincts drilled into him as a child is what Alucard's saying. Something just isn't allowing for death yet.]

And in spite of all of my own self-preservation instincts, Belmont, I have no particular desire to actually make that happen. So I haven't bothered to think about it.

[miraclewhip]

Just got unlucky. Always landed in them face-up.

[ Of all the things to get defensive about, that's the one he picks. Alucard's right. He's really, really bad at dying. ]

Well shit. Now I look like a dick, don't I?

[cryptsleeper]

Like a cat, I think.

[The more Alucard considers the comparison, the more accurate it feels. Not just because of Trevor's personality, but because of what circumstances have resulted in. It's like dealing with a feral.]

You've already done a fine job of doing that, this is barely a drop in the bucket.

[miraclewhip]

If I don't remember it, it doesn't count.

[ And if he does remember it, he may as well pretend that he doesn't. ]

[cryptsleeper]

Think earlier. Your first instinct upon meeting was to try and kill me.

[Thanks for letting him know you remember, Trevor.]

It's a personality trait of yours, no wonder you don't remember specifics. It's a constant onslaught of dickery.

[miraclewhip]

You're the one who asked if I could. I needed to check.

Wouldn't want to lie.

[ Trevor Belmont, honest person who never, ever lies. ]

[cryptsleeper]

Want versus you'll do it regardless are two distinct entities.

[There's a very polite point of not remotely asking what's remembered of last night. Alucard's happy living ignorant of that, and he's also nearly flat on the floor of the wagon now. He groans when he realizes that fact and how distinctly uncomfortable the position is.]

If I asked Sypha to pull over so we can both stand up, how likely is the chance of you popping any of your stitches?

[miraclewhip]

Shouldn't happen. Only happened before because I fell.

[ And because he did a shitty job with them last night, but they're both not talking about last night. For his part, Trevor is about as comfortable as he ever is. Lifetime spent sleeping in trees or in gutters or on tavern floors and all. ]

[cryptsleeper]

Hang on then.

[At least he didn't say stay right there. That would be cause for mockery, and it would be completely within Trevor's right. It takes a few minutes of back and forth with Sypha to agree to pull the carriage over, and there's one comment about the fact there's been actual laughter coming from the back of the wagon every so often. She's still angry, but the Best Behavior has helped alleviate it somewhat.

Which means that they pull over soon enough, and Alucard's not sure how much help getting up Trevor's going to need. So he doesn't move over Trevor to leap out first and stretch his legs. He waits.]

[miraclewhip]

Fuck, this is usually easier.

[ Because usually he doesn't give that much of a shit about tearing stitches open or putting weight on fractured bones. But now he has to. Because even if he can convince himself that he doesn't give a shit about people actually caring, he needs to be whole to face Dracula. The better he is when the time comes, the better the chances of them keeping that unspoken promise.

He pushes his elbow, the one on his good side, against the stacked bags of horse feed behind him to try to lever himself up, and it about works. ]

[cryptsleeper]

Perhaps I put them too close together.

[Yeah no, Alucard mom would be proud of that, even if he's sitting there with chin in hand, genuinely considering the possibility. He doesn't move as Trevor experiences adventures in not fucking up stitches.]

Do you want a hand the rest of the way out of this thing?

[miraclewhip]

You did fine. Wouldn't have let a fucking vampire at an open wound if you weren't going to do a good job of it.

[ It's. Harsh, for what is meant to be a reassurance. He's not used to making reassurances. At the offer of help - and he probably does need help, at least for a little while longer until he's got a good grasp of how much he can move without risking the stitches coming undone again - he just sighs. ]

If you must. Do you always fuss this much, or am I just particularly hopeless?

[cryptsleeper]

Given that you and Sypha are the first people I've spent any extended amount of time with who aren't family in some time, I'm not sure myself.

[Maybe it really is just the first one, which is probably good fodder for teasing if they're not dead at the end of this. Either way, Alucard takes a moment to figure out the best way to maneuver Trevor before he helps the man get appropriately upright, and then out of the back of the wagon entirely.

The amount of cooperation is also given the side-eye from Sypha, which is perhaps understandable. It gives off the aura of the two being up to something else and something stupider than last night, if that was at all possible.]