Blood Is Chapter 2-2

[eiahmon]

Title: Blood Is
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Do I really have to mention that I don't own Castlevania? If I did, we would have gotten to see Julius curbstomp Dracula, the storyline would have been neatened up a bit, and Dracula and Alucard would have just HUGGED already after the reveal in Lords of Shadow 2.
Summary: Lords of Shadow Continuity: AU to Mirror of Fate and Lords of Shadow 2: Trevor wasn't the only one that had the truth of his parentage kept from him by the Brotherhood.
A/N: Awesome Games Done Quick just wrapped up as I write this, with over 1.5 MILLION dollars raised for the Prevent Cancer Foundation. To the the runners: you guys are amazing and thank you for all that you did. For those that donated: my many thanks for you help. I already can't wait until Summer Games Done Quick in July. Anyway, now that my main distraction is done, time to get back to writing. XD

2.

Liam Quinn was a man that rarely suffered from nerves. A lifetime of service to the Brotherhood of Light had cured him of that years ago. The second son of a poor but noble family, his parents had sent him to join the Brotherhood's ranks at the age of five, and he had never looked back. Certainly, he'd been nervous then, during the long ride from his family's lands to the compound that was to be his new home. He'd been nervous when his father had rode away and left him behind, never to be seen again. He'd felt jittery ahead of training missions as a boy, and competition of any kind had always left him shaking inside, though he had hid it from outside view. A few of the many missions he'd undertaken as a grown man had made his stomach churn as well, but he had long ago left those problems behind. Yet now, as he was led through the Cronqvist house to meet with Gabriel for the first time since the previous fall, he felt more nervous than he had ever felt in his 72 years.

What was he going to say? Could mere words have a hope of even beginning to make up for what they had done to Gabriel? They had stolen him from his family, lied to him, discouraged his questions in cruel ways, sent him to die, and left him to rot, all while keeping his son from him. No, there would be no making up for that; they had done too much.

His escort walked up to a set of double doors, knocked, and then opened them.

"Sir Liam Quinn from the Brotherhood of Light here to see you, my lords, my lady."

"Send him in."

His escort stepped to the side and gestured for him to go in, and he swallowed and walked through.

The room he stepped into seemed to be a formal parlor of some kind, a room meant for meeting guests that weren't friends or distant family. There were only two pieces of furniture in the room, a single chair, and in front of that, a couch. On that couch, bracketed by his parents, was Gabriel, looking at him with open wariness. On Gabriel's lap sat Trevor, who was playing with some kind of toy, and as he came into the room, the child looked up at his father and babbled something that made Gabriel smile.

Liam stepped forward and gave a short bow of respect. "Lord Cronqvist, Lady Cronqvist." He looked at Gabriel and felt guilt wash over him. "Gabriel." Gabriel looked up at him for a second, and then he turned his head.

"Do not address Lord Gabriel so informally, sir." said the knight that was standing behind the couch.

Oh yes, Gabriel would have a title now... "My sincerest apologies Lord Gabriel. I overstepped my bounds."

Gabriel raised red eyes – so he really had become a vampire? – to look at him, and he nearly flinched back at the unspoken accusation in their sad depths. Trevor leaned in and cuddled into his father's chest, and Gabriel smiled again.

"Take a seat, Sir Quinn." Lord Cronqvist said quietly. "It was my understanding that Cardinal Volpe was supposed to come here?"

"It was, my lord." Liam said as he sat. "That is part of what I came to speak with you about."

"Oh?"

"The Cardinal has fled, along with Master Cecil. No one knows where they have gone."

For a second he saw something flicker across Wolfram Cronqvist's face, but Gabriel's face was much more open.

"Fled?" he said quietly, but Liam could hear the accusation behind the words. "They just... left?"

"I am afraid so, Lord Gabriel."

"And you have no idea where they went?"

"No, my lord."

Lady Cronqvist spoke then. "Is that all you came to say?" Her voice was calm, and her tone was level, but there was barely restrained anger behind her words.

"No, my lady. There is more."

"Indeed. Then speak; let us hear what you have to say."

"I will be completely honest and frank here; I had no idea that Gabriel - Lord Gabriel was anything but an unwanted child left on our doorstep like so many others." He looked at Gabriel, who was looking back at him. "I swear I never knew."

"What about Trevor?" Gabriel asked. "Did you know that he had been kept from me?"

We he had said that he was going to be honest. "Yes, I knew."

Gabriel's eyes flashed and began to glow, but Lady Cronqvist laid a hand on his shoulder, calming him. "Explain." he growled.

"The Cardinal told us that the mirror had shown that the child would die if left with you and your wife -" Gabriel flinched. "- so it was best to keep him away from you until the danger had passed."

"And once Marie dead and buried. Once I was leaving to avenge her death, why not tell me then?"

"I thought that the Cardinal had."

Gabriel blinked in confusion; he had obviously not expected that. "He had intended to tell me?"

"I do not know if he intended to, but it had been suggested that revealing Trevor's existence to you might give you a reason to come home safely, and William had agreed to tell you before you left. I see now that he obviously did not."

"Were you aware that Gabriel was still alive?" Lady Cronqvist asked.

"No, my lady. Volpe told us that he had died, and I believed him."

"What of Volpe's plans for him." Lord Cronqvist asked. "Do you know of them?"

"Once the Lords of Shadow were defeated, I knew of no further plans. I cannot fathom why he left him in Bernhard Castle."

"How much was Master Cecil a part of this?" Gabriel asked then as he ran his claws through his son's hair, and Liam found himself staring at the strange sight of it for a second. That something so dangerous could be so gentle...

He shook his head and answered the question. "I believe that he knows everything, and that is why he fled. I imagine that what he knew was more than enough to see him hang."

"Just stealing a noble family's child, especially its heir, would be enough for that, Master Liam." Lord Cronqvist said in a flat tone. "How many hang with him depends on how much you tell us today."

"But my lord!"

"I want to trust you, Master Liam." Gabriel said quietly. "I want to believe that you were never a part of all of this. I overheard you speaking to Volpe and Cecil twelves days ago. You were angry on my behalf and were upset at their casual acceptance of everything."

Liam couldn't help but smile. "So there was an intruder that night: you."

Gabriel nodded his head. "I was there, yes."

"William and Cecil nearly went mad trying to discover who had been there."

"Worried that someone would hear something that they didn't want getting out?"

"I have no doubt of that."

"You are the eldest member of the Brotherhood now, correct Master Liam?" Lord Cronqvist asked, and Liam turned to him.

"That is correct."

"I want you to return there. I want you to track down either Cecil or Volpe – either one will suit, but both would be very welcome. I want you to do whatever you need to find out what Volpe's plan had been for Gabriel. Then I want you to tell us everything you have found. We demand answers."

"It will be as you say, my lord. I have to admit that I too would like to know his reasoning behind everything."

"Then we hope to hear from you soon."

Recognizing the dismissal when he heard it, Liam stood up from the chair. He gave another short bow, and then he walked to the door, where his escort was waiting.

"Master Liam?" came Lord Cronqvist's voice, and he turned to look at him. The nobleman's faded brown eyes were staring at him intently. "I do not need to warn you of what will become of you if you betray us, do I?"

"No, my lord."

Lord Cronqvist nodded in satisfaction, and Liam followed his escort out of the room.

******

He had much to think about during the return journey to the compound. The Brotherhood's two eldest members were now wanted men, and Liam had no doubt that Lord Cronqvist would have men scouring the countryside for them. Anyone that sheltered them would also feel the powerful lord's wrath.

Liam sighed and rubbed his hand over his face and ignored the concerned looks of his escort. True, he was now the most senior member of the Brotherhood, but he'd never been the leading type. No, he preferred teaching the young ones and being a parental figure of sorts to them, yet now he was in charge of a large organization consisting of multiple compounds, and several hundred men and boys of various ages.

He didn't know where to start.

Several hours' ride later, they made camp for the night, and after eating a meager supper, Liam wrapped himself in a wool blanket and sat by the fire, deep in thought.

The first thing to do would be to announce to the others that William and Cecil were now wanted men and explain why. Everyone already knew that Gabriel lived, because those accompanying William the day he had tried to grab Gabriel on the road had not kept silent about what they had seen. The second would be to ransack William's personal chambers and see if he left anything useful behind. It was doubtful, but the possibility existed that he missed something before his flight. The third would be to send out men to search for him and Cecil. The fourth would be to try and find a way to make amends for every wrong they had committed against Gabriel and his parents.

Liam sighed; it seemed like an impossible task.

"Master Liam?" Eddard, one of his escorts, asked. "Are you well?"

Liam gave him a weak smile. "As well as can be expected, Eddard. We have much to do once we return home, and Lord Cronqvist will be expecting results."

"So it's true then?" Michael, who had been left on the Brotherhood's doorstep only days after Gabriel's own arrival, asked. "Gabriel is the Cronqvists' son?"

He sighed. "He is. Right now he is with them, as he should be, along with his son."

"So old man Cronqvist had really been telling the truth that day when he came to get Trevor." Eddard said thoughtfully.

Liam nodded. "He had. For some reason, Cardinal Volpe and Master Cecil conspired to steal Gabriel from his family when he was an infant."

Michael frowned. "I remember hearing that the Cronqvist house had been attacked years ago. Was that when they took him?"

"It was."

"But everyone said the house was attacked by a large group. How many knew what they were doing there that night?"

Liam felt his mind lock up as Michael's words sank in. Indeed, William and Cecil had not acted alone in stealing Gabriel from his cradle; they had brought many others with them. Where had those other men come from, and where were they now? Had William hired random men off the street for the attack, and if they had come from the Brotherhood's ranks, how had he ensured that the secret of where Gabriel had come from was exactly that? Sooner or later someone would have slipped up, right? How long had William been planning it? And for what? Yes, Gabriel had saved them all, but why steal him from his home? From his family?

Liam sighed again and closed his eyes for a second before he opened them again to look into the flames of the slowly dying fire. "We can't do anything about it tonight, lads." he said. "Let's turn in and get an early start tomorrow. The sooner we get home, the sooner we can work on getting some answers for Lord Gabriel."

"Lord... Gabriel?" Eddard said in confusion. "Shit, he is a lord now, isn't he?"

"Indeed, he is." Liam moved away from the fire and laid down on his bedroll. "And his father is a very powerful man. It would be best to do as they ask as quickly as possible." He rolled over onto his right side, with his back to the fire. "Goodnight, boys. Get some sleep."

"Yes, Master Liam."

"Goodnight, Master Liam."

******

Gabriel stood in front of the window, staring out through the glass at the moonlit landscape below. He had fed from the butcher's earlier, and he knew that he should go to bed and try to sleep through the night, but his own nature demanded that he remain awake.

Or at least, that's what he told himself.

He sighed and closed his eyes. He knew the real reason why he couldn't sleep. He so wanted to believe Master Liam, to know that at least one of his childhood mentors hadn't betrayed him, but knowing what he knew, he had to wonder just how many of his comrades in arms had been in on the scheme to use him like a tool to fix something that no one else wanted any part of. Had the entire Brotherhood been aware of it? Had his entire life been orchestrated like a puppet show with Volpe holding the strings?

He placed his palm against the cool glass and rested his forehead against the window. What now? What was Volpe planning? Had he run away to escape prosecution for his crimes? Or had he hidden himself away to continue his schemes in peace? What had he meant days ago when he had said that his, Gabriel's, tasks were not complete? What role did Trevor play in everything? How exactly did he need to be "prepared"? What did the mirror that Father had shown him have to do with it all?

Having so many questions with no answers for any of them was killing him. Was he safe? Was Trevor safe? Would Volpe and Cecil show up one day with another large group and assault the house again? Would he be once again be taken from loving family to a place where he would be used again? Despite how upset he had been at the time, he had heard what Sir Pershan had said to Volpe's men on the road that day.

"You would have taken him to where he would have been thrown into a dungeon cell to rot until he was needed again!"

Gabriel shivered as the words replayed in his mind. Is that what his father had seen in the mirror? Was that what they would have done to him? And Trevor... sending him to his death at the hands of his own father. All for some blasted prophecy. A prophecy that Volpe had never bothered to tell him about. What was the man planning, and why?

He sighed again; he didn't know what to do.

He dropped his head from the window and looked over to his right, towards his bed. Suddenly it seemed very inviting, and he walked over and climbed into it. He laid down on his right side, shut the curtain over the window with a thought, and pulled the quilt over himself. Sleep was what he needed. Hopefully, sleep would calm his whirling thoughts long enough for him to think of a solution.

******

Liam nodded amicably towards those that greeted him when he walked into the compound's entrance hall. He then turned to those that had accompanied them.

"I want everyone in the great hall." he told them. "Everyone but the children and their nurse of course. There are some things that need to be said, so I do not care what they are doing. They are to meet me in the hall at once."

"Yes, Master Liam."

"We'll get it done right away, sir."

Liam nodded once, and then he turned away from them and made straight for William's chambers. They were just as they had been days ago when they had discovered that he had fled along with Cecil, in that nothing was out of place save for the bed covers, a few books, and a change of clothes. Everything else was as William had had them for the past 20 years, which is what made the upcoming task so difficult. Who knew how many hidden nooks and crannies the man had? And that was if he had left anything useful behind to begin with. William was certainly smart enough to either take anything incriminating with him or destroy it so others couldn't find it. Still, as long as the possibility existed that he had forgotten something, no matter how small, they had to search.

Or rather Liam had to search. No doubt that there were some that would remain loyal to their Cardinal, even after being told that he had committed a horrible crime. It pained him to think that he couldn't trust them, especially since he had helped raise many of them: taught them their numbers and letters, helped them with their first halting steps into reading and writing, answered their multitude of questions, soothed their hurts, and comforted them when they were upset. The compound's massive library was acknowledged as his domain, and the children often found him there. Sometimes they asked him questions, sometimes they sat with him and read quietly, other times they asked for stories after their lessons.

"Can you tell me the story of Gilgamesh again, Master Liam?"

"Once your lessons are done, Gabriel. Now quit trying to stall and pay attention."

Liam shook his head to clear the memories of eight year old Gabriel's eager face and surveyed the work ahead of him. No, he couldn't trust any of them to help him. It was too much of a risk that one still loyal to William and Cecil could conceal something important if found.

There was a knock on the door frame behind him. "Everyone is waiting for you, Master Liam." said one of the squires, a boy by the name of Jacob that had been sent to them by his poor mother after the sudden death of the child's father. Liam turned around at smiled at the child.

"Run along then, Jacob." he said. "I will be there shortly." The boy ran off, and Liam looked about the room one more time before he stepped out, closed the door, and locked it securely behind him. He would get to work on it, as soon as he had spoken to everyone. There were some hard truths that needed to be said first.

Power: 1 -- Power: 3
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Comments

[tatteredseraph.livejournal.com]

Ooohhhhh...... excellent chapter! Loved it. 'Regret' is an excellent choice of music, it's up there as my favourite MM song, especially the Live version.

[eiahmon.livejournal.com]

Thanks, and I didn't know you were a Malice Mizer fan! *high five* Yes Regret is gorgeous and so fitting for this chapter (which is why I was listening to it while writing. hehehe) Sadly the band was just not the same after Gackt left. Klaha was great, but he wasn't Gackt, you know?

[tatteredseraph.livejournal.com]

I discovered MM through Castlevania, as it happens - from Gackt's dressing up suspiciously like Alucard for the Mizerable photobook, along with them having a song share a name with Symphony of the Night's Japanese name. I agree that they weren't the same, but I did rather like Bara no Seidou, and Beast of Blood. I like the darker, gothier MM songs.
I think that Gackt's 'Todokanai...' would also fit Blood Is, as would a bunch of Versailles songs, such as 'Ascendead Master', 'Destiny the Lovers', and 'Serenade'.

[eiahmon.livejournal.com]

I found them the same way. XD I've heard flat out that the song is about the game, but I don't buy it.

Hahaha, I'll have to check into that. My favorite Gackt song is "Emu For My Dear". Yours?

[tatteredseraph.livejournal.com]

I don't buy it either. Yeah, Gackt plays a reaper-like figure in the video, but the lyrics don't work at all. Favourite Gackt song... hmmm.... not sure. I love Mizerable, Returner, Metamorphoze, Todokanai, Ghost, and Redemption. I've not liked his more recent stuff though tbh, and haven't listened to any full albums - mostly just bits on youtube here and there. Some friends of mine saw him Live on his Fried Chickenz tour thing and said it was a real let-down, sadly.

Just quickly, I've had a thought of a somewhat fitting song for AMoS: D's Der Konig der Dunkelheit. It fits Mathias pretty well as a song. :)

[eiahmon.livejournal.com]

I really haven't been able to find a song that fits either AMoS or Blood Is - I even tried your suggestions and they don't seem to work for me. Believe me though; I've been trying to find one for AMoS since I started it years ago. Joachim really doesn't have a theme either (That "I Bring You a Song" from the Bambi soundtrack fit that one scene when Hector visits Trevor's grave - more in tone and mood than lyrics though.)

Gabriel/Dracula himself has a couple of theme songs though. XD
Never Too Late by Three Days Grace (Yes, the fic was named after the song XD)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qOvNgEsZ9s

Everything Burns by Ben Moody feat. Anastacia (The lyrics for the chorus are not completely accurate. It's "Burning their lies", not "burning in their lies" fyi.):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZ2ZWLXvZ3Y

The chorus of the second song fits Dracula REALLY well. You got a theme for any other CV characters?

[tatteredseraph.livejournal.com]

I really like Everything Burns, and yeah, I agree, it really fits Dracula well. Hmm... I'm not sure really regarding whether I have any theme tunes for the CV characters. Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls sort of fits Gabriel and Marie, bt not as well as Everything Burns.