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AMoS Chapter 7-2
Rating: R for language, and mentions of RAPE and M/M SLASH. Don't like, then don't read.
Disclaimer: Castlevania and its characters and situations are the sole property of Konami. I am making no money or profit off of this fanfiction and no copyright infringement is intended.
Summary: AU. What if Joachim Armster had lived through his fight with Leon Belmont? What might have been different? Well hang on, because Joachim is going to tell you all about it. From his kidnapping and forced turning to his rescue from the ruins of Walter's castle, and from Trevor's birth and to Richter's death of old age, he tells all - and blames it all on Leon while he's at it.
Section Summary: Part 7 covers Order of Shadows up to Christopher's death.
2.
Love and Loss
Nearly nine months to the day that Lucas passed, Irina gave birth to her and Soleil's second child, a daughter that they named Zoe. Again Soleil just smiled quietly at his daughter's birth, while three year old Desmond seemed fascinated by his baby sister and could often be found watching her with wide eyes.
The following year, in 1602, I felt Kerwin's end of our bond go silent suddenly, and when I sat up and paid attention to it, I felt him reeling in shock over something.
Are you all right? I asked him as Hector looked at me with furrowed brows. He had felt it too.
Yes... I'm fine. I just wasn't expecting that. he replied, and I could hear the confusion in his mental voice.
Expecting what?
My mother... I... I'll be over in a few, if you don't mind?
No, I don't mind at all. I'll see you soon.
It was only a few minutes later that I felt Kerwin cross my border, and I shooed Hector into the library as Kerwin crossed the Belmont wards and came through my front door. He looked pretty frazzled, and I plonked him down on the couch and shoved a drink into his hands. He quaffed it in one gulp and wiped at his face.
"What is the matter?" I asked him as I sat beside him.
He leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees and stared at the floor. "My mother just died." he said in a surprised tone.
"What?"
"The bond just... broke, and now there's nothing there."
"Do you have any idea what happened?"
"No. I'd been keeping the bond closed from my end ever since I saw her last, so there was nothing until it vanished." He paused. "I'm... I'm not sure how to feel about this. She threw me aside like nothing, Joachim. If my father had been only another day or two later in coming to get me, I would have starved to death, and then she wanted nothing to do with me until I'd killed Gannet. But she's still my mother."
I placed my hand on his shoulder in a silent show of support. I hadn't liked Siomha Bernhard at all, but I could understand Kerwin's confusion. After a moment, he stood up.
"I should go. No doubt I worried Celia and Matatias."
"Call me if you need anything." I said, and he nodded as he walked out.
Once he was gone, Hector came out of the library and sat down on the couch beside me.
"Kerwin's mother didn't want him?" he asked quietly, and I shook my head.
"Mine didn't either." he added in a low tone. "Why have a child if you don't want it?"
I opened my arms, and he climbed up onto my lap and snuggled in. "That was long ago, Hector. You have me now, and I can't even imagine life without you." I felt a rush of affection from the bond, and his arms came around me.
"Tată," he whispered, and I smiled as he cuddled up against me. I held him until it was his bedtime, and then I carried him off to bed.
Kerwin seemed to shake off his confusion quickly. He really never knew his mother and had only encountered her once. He knew well enough her reasons for not wanting him all those centuries ago, so he simply pushed her out of his mind and went about his life.
******
Only a few months later, Christopher announced his intention to retire from hunting, and one can imagine how well the clan reacted to that news.
Some begged Christopher to reconsider, while others lamented the family's future with Soleil at the reins. There were cries for Soleil to step aside so someone else could run things and demands that Christopher make four year old Desmond the heir instead. Christopher told them to shut up, while Soleil simply ignored them. Some went as far to pull Desmond aside and "secretly" tell him that he would make a much better Lord Belmont than his Papa would. Other still flat out told the small child that his father was a terrible person who did not deserve the title.
Like any other little boy, Desmond adored his father, and it upset him that people were being mean. He ran home in tears, and the following day, Soleil broke his silence. He ordered everyone into the hall (aside from Irina, who stayed at home with Desmond and Zoe) and laid into them.
"You all hate me," he said, and I could see my spot in the back of the room the way his hands were trembling as he struggled to keep from yelling. "And believe me, I understand that. I was a fool and an idiot. But that is no reason, no reason at all, to say such things to my son! A boy who is only four years old! A boy who does not understand why people are saying such things about the father he loves. I know you don't want me as Lord Belmont, and no, I don't deserve it after everything I've done, but until I'm dead and buried, we all have to live with it. Until then, keep your mouths shut and stop harassing my son! That is an order! I won't tolerate anyone saying such things to him! Am I in any way unclear!" He looked across the clan, and for a moment, I thought of Leon's eyes as he stood behind Trevor years ago.
No one said anything, and Soleil nodded once and strode out of the hall without another word. The grumbles continued after that, but no one said anything to Desmond about it. Soleil may not have been liked, but he still held a great deal of power, and the meeting served as a sharp reminder of that.
******
Desmond grew into an absolutely adorable child who was forever getting his cheeks pinched by strangers on the street, a fact that irritated the boy greatly. To get away from his cooing cousins, he often fled to my house and could be found playing games with Isaac and August when Hector allowed it. Thankfully, he received a reprieve in 1605 when his second sister, Dolores, was born. I laughed quietly when I saw seven year old Desmond escape from the throng of relatives clustered around his mother and sister, sigh, dramatically wipe sweat from his brow, and run off to play.
And no one was surprised when the whip responded to Desmond only a few days later. Soleil didn't react at the cheer that resulted when he announced his son as heir.
"I don't know why everyone's so happy about it, Uncle Joachim." Desmond told me later, as he snacked on candied apples and cider at my dining table. Isaac was sitting on the floor at his feet, acting more like a dog than a dragon, ready to catch any crumbs before they hit the floor. "The whip glowed and a girl's voice told me I was next in line. Now everyone's acting like..." He hesitated as he tried to find the words to describe his relatives' antics, and he tossed a candied peel to August, who caught it in his mouth and swallowed it whole. Hector gave a disapproving frown at his devils' behavior, but he said nothing.
"Acting like?" I prompted Desmond, and he sighed.
"They're acting like there hasn't been a Lord Belmont in sooooo looooooong, and now there is one so everything is going to be good and perfect." the child said in frustration. "The just won't leave me alone, Uncle Joachim!"
I sat down next to him. "Have you said anything to your father about it?"
"Papa says to just get used to it, and that they'll stop sooner or later." He looked up at me. "Uncle Joachim, why do they hate Papa so much?"
"They don't hate him, Desmond."
"They do!" he insisted. "They don't think I hear things when they talk in whispers, but I do, and they all say that we'd be better off without him!' He slammed the heel of his hand down on the table top. "They say Grandpa should stay on until I'm old enough, because of what Papa did." He looked up at me with blue eyes that were filling up with tears. "What did Papa do to make them hate him so much?"
I reached out, and Desmond climbed out of his chair and onto my lap. "That's not my story to tell, little one. That's something to ask your father when you're older, but for now you don't need to worry about it. If people are saying things where you can hear them, then you need to tell your parents, so they can put a stop to it."
"Or I could just tell them to shut up." he grumbled.
I laughed. "That might not go well, so just tell your parents." I moved him back to his own chair. "Now finish your snack, because it's getting late and you need to get home." He finished off his candied apple, drank down the last of his cider, and then he scurried down out of his chair and out the door, and I resolved to speak to Soleil about what his son was hearing.
******
It turns out that I didn't need to. During a gathering in the hall, Desmond wandered off to play with a few of his cousins, but he hadn't been gone long when we heard his voice shouting in anger.
"Stop it!" he yelled, followed by the sound of him stamping his foot on the floor. "Just stop it! Stop it! Stop it! I don't want to hear it anymore!"
The room slowly went silent as everyone turned to look, and I saw Soleil scowling as he stood up to go to his son, with Irina right behind him.
Desmond kept yelling, and I could see tears running down his face. "Why do you hate him! He didn't do anything bad! Stop talking about my papa like that!"
Soleil and Irina reached their child, and Desmond turned and hid his face in his father's shirt. Soleil gently ran his hand over the boy's hair. "Desmond, your mother is going to take you and your sisters home, alright?" Desmond nodded miserably and wiped at his eyes, and Irina took him by the hand and led him out, with Dolores held in her other arm and Zoe tagging along behind. "Uncle Joachim, you should take Hector and go. This has nothing to do with either one of you."
I didn't need to be told twice, and Hector and I followed Irina and the children out the door. We made it halfway across the green before Soleil started yelling, and Hector stepped closer to me as we made our way home. Raised voices still made him nervous, and once we were in the house, I walked him into the library and sat us down on the couch. The distance and the walls were not enough to block out Soleil's voice from our hearing, and Hector curled up on my lap while we waited him to quiet.
After several minutes, I heard Soleil go silent, and then I tracked his heartbeat as he returned to the lord's house, followed shortly by his parents. The rest of the clan lingered in the hall for a while, before they filtered out to return to their homes. That was the last time anyone said anything about Soleil to Desmond.
******
Barely four months later, I was seated on my porch with a book, while Desmond and Zoe played some kind of game with August and Isaac nearby. It was late afternoon, and Hector was in bed still. As always there was the quiet hum from the bonds I had with Kerwin and Silvanus, as well as the louder hum of the bond I had with Hector. I was engrossed in my reading when a surge of joy from Kerwin made me drop it in surprise. I felt Hector waking, as he had felt it too, and both of us sat silently for a moment as we tried to figure out what had him so happy.
We received our answer not longer when I felt an... extension if you will, to the bond with Kerwin forming, and I began to feel another person there.
Celia? I thought in shock, and I heard her giggle. I stood up, picked up my book, and went back into the house, and I found Hector sitting up in bed. He was bonded with Celia as nephew and aunt so he had a much more powerful connection to her than I did. He smiled at me when I came into the room, and I sat down with him as I reached through the bond with Kerwin and confirmed my suspicion. Silvanus gave me the mental equivalent of a tap on the shoulder then, and he also told me that yes, Kerwin and Celia had just bonded. The bond with them then narrowed, and Hector blushed as he realized the reason for that. I laughed, ruffled his hair, and tucked him back into bed.
A few weeks later, Hector and I were among a multitude of guests, which also included Christopher, Simona, Soleil, and Irina, as Kerwin (Know as Lord Olric Bernhard to humans at the time) married Celia in the chapel in his manor house. It was so wonderful, people said, that Lord Bernhard had manged to find love again after the sudden death of his wife just a few short years ago. It was wonderful that his young son (Matatias was known as Emmitt and was under an illusion that made him look like a six year old boy.) would have a mother figure in his life. The entire mess made me glad that I didn't have to worry about maintaining such charades with the Belmonts. Of course, Hector and I were under illusions too, ones that made us look like Bernhards, as we were there as relatives of the groom. Silvanus was under a similar illusion, while Ladislas and Rachim were there as friends and under illusions that were nondescript as not to draw attention.
Two nights after the wedding, Celia went one step further and adopted Matatias as her son, and the child was ecstatic about having a mother after centuries of having only his father. I was just surprised that the relationship had progressed to this point after the difficulties they had had in the beginning. I suppose that time, a lot of time, can fix just about anything.
"I think I understand a bit better now." Kerwin said late one night, as we having a drink in his sitting room, one week after the wedding and one month after their bonding. Celia had gone to put Matatias to bed for the night, and Hector was dozing on the couch beside me with his head on my lap.
"Understand what?" I asked as I ran my fingers through Hector's hair and basked in the quiet contentment from his end of the bond.
Kerwin gave me a thoughtful look. "This may sound strange really, but I think I understand Mathias a little now."
Well, he was right; that most certainly surprised me. "How so?"
"It just occurred to me, you know, about how life is with the bond; I can't imagine how I ever lived without it before. And then I thought; how would it feel if it were to suddenly break? How would I go on without her?" He shuddered. "It was actually too horrible to contemplate. If something were to happen, I know I would have you and Matatias and Opa to help me. Who did Mathias have? No one but Belmont, and Belmont couldn't be there that often. I think, in that case, I'd go mad with rage too. It would be preferable to being in such pain."
"Is the bond really that powerful?" Hector asked in a quiet voice, and Kerwin gave him a small smile.
"It is." he said. "If both sides go into it willingly, it is stronger even than the bond you have with your father."
"I wonder if that had anything to do with why Walter trusted Mathias so easily?" I wondered out loud, and Kerwin looked at me for a second.
"Perhaps. Cronqvist resembled Dragos -" I saw a flicker in his eyes for a second. "- who, from what little Father told me, resembled Adelar a great deal. The resemblance, along with the damage from the broken bond, may have caused him to make decisions he normally wouldn't have. If Cronqvist had shown up with Father sane and stable, I'm sure the outcome would have been much different."
******
In the fall of 1607, Soleil and Irina went to visit a neighboring lord's lands for a gathering of some kind, leaving their children at home. Christopher and Simona had declined the invitation do to their age and the chilly weather, and they were in bed asleep before the sun set. Once the sun was down for the day, Hector and I went to visit Silvanus, and we did not return home until just before the dawn. Only then, once Hector was in bed and asleep, did I notice that I could not detect Soleil and Irina's heartbeats. I frowned; where were they? Had they stayed over at the other lord's home? Doubtful since they were outside the safety of the wards, but I supposed it was possible. I went over to the lord's home and found Christopher up and about, and he also expressed concern at his son and daughter-in-law's absence.
There was nothing to do but wait, and I returned to my own home to catch a few hours of sleep.
It wasn't until hours later, in the early afternoon, that I detected a new heartbeat approaching the Belmont lands. Not far behind it, I heard several others, and I poked my head out of a window just in time to see someone, a peasant, riding through the gate like the devil was on his tail. He went straight to the lord's house, jumped off his horse before the animal had come to a full stop, and started banging on the door. The door opened, and the young man vanished inside for a few minutes.
The second group of heartbeats arrived then, in the form of several other men on horses, riding escort around a hay wagon. As soon as the wagon came through the gate, the air picked up the scent of death and decomposition that was just getting started over to me, and I felt my heart sink. Right then, Christopher and Simona bolted out of their home and made straight for the wagon just as it came to a stop. I couldn't see what was in the wagon from where I was, but I did see a blanket being pulled back, and Christopher stumbled back from it as though he'd been kicked as Simona sank to her knees with a keening wail.
The sound attracted the other Belmonts, and I ducked down out of sight so the peasants wouldn't see me as they gathered around.
"Tată?" came Hector's voice from the bedroom, and I jumped slightly as I had not even sensed him waking due to how focused I had been on the scene in the green. I walked into the bedroom to check on him without thinking about what I was doing. I knew on some level what I had just seen, but I didn't understand what it was.
"What's happening, Tată?" Hector asked in confusion, and I shook my head.
"I'm not sure, Hector. Just.. just go back to sleep, alright?"
"What's wrong?"
"I'll explain later. Just go back to sleep, Hector."
"But -"
"Not now, Hector. Go back to sleep."
He looked at me, and I turned and walked out of the room.
I wanted to go out and confirm my horrible suspicion, but with the peasants still hanging about, I had to stay out of sight. They lingered for several minutes, and once they had finally gone, I came outside and moved over to the lord's house. The wagon was gone, and the smell of decomposition was coming from inside the house. Inside I found what I had feared I would.
Soleil and Irina were laid out in the parlor, side by side. Both of them were completely still and cold, with no breath or heartbeat. Christopher were kneeling by his son's side, head bowed, face hidden in Soleil's blood drenched tunic, shoulders shaking hard as he cried. Simona was also kneeling on the floor, her face hidden in her hands, sobbing loudly. A quick glances told me that Irina had died quickly from a hard blow to her head, but Soleil... Soleil looked like someone had wanted to send a clear message.
A deep gaping wound on his neck, one that had nearly decapitated him, was the obvious cause of death, but that was not the only wound he had suffered. His body was riddled with deep cuts and gouges, and many of them were crusted with blood, showing that he had been alive when they were inflicted. Several others however were clear, showing that his attacker had carved into him even after his heart had ceased to beat. His bruised and bloodied right hand still clenched the Vampire Killer, and the encrusted blood that covered it showed that it had done battle before its wielder had fallen.
"Why?" Christopher cried as he raised his head. "Oh why? Why? Who would do this! My boy! Why did they take my boy!"
I went over to him, and he fell into my embrace, but I couldn't take my eyes away from Soleil's blue eyes, which were staring up at the ceiling above him in what appeared to be resignation, like he had accepted his death before it had come to him.
What had happened?
******
There were no answers as Soleil and Irina were prepared for burial. They were bathed, Soleil's wounds were stitched closed, and Irina's hair was styled to hide the gaping hole in her skull. They were dressed in their finest clothing, and only then were Desmond, Zoe, and Delores allowed to see their parents. Their grandparents did their best to explain that Soleil and Irina were gone, but what child can fully understand death?
Nine year old Desmond came in first, followed closely by six year old Zoe. Two year old Delores seemed to have no understanding at all that things had changed for her and her siblings, and she stayed in her grandmother's arms, sucking her thumb. Desmond led his sister up to the open casket where their father was lying, though his steps were slow and hesitant. I could hear his little heartbeat accelerating when he saw his father's pale face, and he shook his head slightly.
"Papa?" he whispered in the silent room, and he took a step backward when Soleil didn't respond. "Mama?" Irina was silent, and Desmond gave me a panicked look. I looked over at Christopher, who was lingering just inside the door, and he came forward just as Zoe let out a sob and ran back to Simona.
Christopher came to stand behind Desmond and placed his hands on the boy's shoulders. "You don't have to do this, Desmond."
Desmond shook his head again and wiped at his eyes. "I do." He swallowed, and then he closed his eyes and took four quick steps forward to stand right beside his father's coffin. He took a deep breath, and then he opened his eyes. He stared at Soleil, and then he raised his hand and reached out. He paused for a second, and then he lightly touched Soleil's cheek.
"What happened?" he whispered.
"We don't know, Desmond." Christopher said in a soft tone.
Desmond pulled his hand back, and then he moved over to his mother. He slipped his small hand into hers for a moment, and then he abruptly turned and ran out of the room. I heard him start crying just before the front door opened and slammed shut.
"I'll go after him." Christopher said, and Simona nodded without saying a word. I watched him go, and then I turned back to Soleil and Irina for a moment. I then followed Christopher out of the room, and I ran my hand over Zoe's hair as I passed her.
I returned to my own home, where I found Hector sound asleep. He stirred when I sat down beside him, but he didn't wake, even as I gathered him up into my arms. I rested my cheek against his hair and passed the rest of the day in quiet, holding my son in my arms.
******
The next day we buried Soleil and Irina. They were laid to rest side by side in the regular cemetery on the east side of the property. It was a beautiful morning, with only a few scattered clouds scuttling across the blue sky, and just a hint of a chill in the air. Christopher and Simona stood with their grandchildren by the head of the graves, as the priest gave the eulogy. Delores napped against her grandmother's shoulder, while Zoe cried. Desmond, standing in front of Christopher, kept silent, but his little face was streaked with tears.
I also kept silent through the service; there was nothing I could say. I could only think of Soleil as a small boy, of that mischievous smile, of those bright blue eyes that lit up whenever he was up to something. I saw the man that he had grown into, of his soft smiles when he was happy about something, his quiet dignity in dealing with the dislike of the rest of the clan, and his clear love for his wife and children. I glanced at the coffins being lowered into ground. What on earth had happened?
Once the service had ended, Christopher sent Simona and the children back home, and then he ordered everyone else into the hall. I could have gone home to Hector, but I was curious about what he wanted to say, so I went as well.
Christopher moved to stand on the dais, with his back to everyone, and I saw him clenching his fists as his shoulders shook. Once everyone was seated, he whirled around to face them.
"Are you happy now?" he hissed, and I saw several people start at the question. He raked his eyes across them.
"It is a simple question!" he snapped. "Are you happy now! You go what you wanted! You didn't want Soleil in charge of the clan, and now he is DEAD! My only child is gone! My grandchildren no longer have their parents! Is this what you wanted! TELL ME, ARE YOU HAPPY NOW!" He stared at everyone, chest heaving, and people seemed to wilt under his glare.
"Let me clear here." he said in a low tone that sent shivers down my spine. "No one, and I mean no one, is to say anything negative to those children about their parents. They just had to bury their mother and father, and they do not need insensitive idiots spouting off things. Keep your mouths shut about Soleil and Irina and have some respect for the dead. When they are old enough to know about what Soleil did as a boy, I will tell them, no one else. Am I in anyway not understood here?"
No one moved or made a sound for a long moment, and then someone hesitantly spoke up.
"But what happened to them? Who would do such a thing?"
Christopher shook his head. "I do not know." he said in a voice that was rough with tears. "I will be looking into it as soon as possible, but right now my concern is for my grandchildren first and foremost. Everyone is to carry on like normal, but be vigilant when you are outside the wards. We have no idea if this was a random crime or a planned, deliberate act against the head of the Belmont clan. Until we know either way, I want everyone to be extra careful and cautious. Now return to your homes; we are done in here."
No one moved as Christopher stepped off the dais and walked out of the hall, and I quickly slipped out of my usual place in the very back and followed him. He made it halfway across the green before he stumbled as sobs shook his lean frame, and I caught him and began to walk him home. He cried the entire way, only calming himself before he went inside.
"Go back home to Hector, Uncle." he said. "Treasure your time with your son, because..." His voice began to shake, and he shook his head slightly. "Because I can't do that anymore." He opened the door and went inside, and I heaved a sigh before I did as he advised. I went home, kicked my boots off, and laid down next to Hector. He rolled over to face me and wormed his way into my embrace, and I closed my eyes and held him as the sun moved across the sky.
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As always, thanks for reading. :)
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