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Blood Is Chapter 2-10
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: So I finally kicked my former isp to the curb, because I got tired of paying $70 a month for "high speed" internet that barely moved the speed of dial up most days. I now have a new isp with high speed internet that is actually what it says it is. As a result of that, I was finally able to rent a Minecraft server for myself and my friends to hang out on, which is the reason for why this chapter took so long. Sorry about that, but, c'mon, it's Minecraft. *goes back to building castle*
10.
"So things have been quiet then." Gabriel said as he and his parents shared a late dinner in his sitting room.
Father chewed, swallowed, and nodded. "Yes. There are a few rumors about you being here, but since no one outside the household has seen you, no one seems to be taking them seriously. Sir Quinn has heard and seen nothing about Volpe and Cecil, so he thinks they are lying low for now."
"I don't find that comforting. If I don't know where they are and what they're planning, they could come out at me at any time."
Mother gave him a sympathetic look. "We understand, Gabriel, but for now, there is little we can do about them. We haven't even an idea on where to start looking for them. We just have to hope and pray that they have given up."
Gabriel scowled slightly and jabbed his fork into the meat on his plate a little harder than necessary.
"Gabriel?"
"I'm fine." He wasn't sure what bothered him more: the knowledge that his old mentors were out there somewhere plotting against him, or the fact that his parents were hoping that God would help them. Like He'd helped any so far...
Gabriel.
Gabriel raised his head and looked around as he heard his name spoken. His senses quickly confirmed that no one else was nearby, yet he had heard that warning tone, like he had done or said something he shouldn't have.
"Gabriel?"
He looked across the table at his father, who was looking at him with worried eyes. "Did you hear that?"
His parents looked at each other and then back at him. "We didn't hear anything." Mother said. "Are you all right?"
There were no other heartbeats but theirs in the room, yet that voice sounded like it had been spoken right into his ear. "I'm fine..." he trailed off as he looked around the room one last time. He knew that he had heard that!
"Perhaps you should lie down for a little while?"
Gabriel shook his head. "I said I'm fine." he said in a tone that ended the discussion, which caused the room to lapse into silence for a few minutes.
"Have you had any more luck?" Father finally asked.
Gabriel nodded. "Some, yes." His mist form was certainly interesting, as it appeared to be made up of smoke and embers. The reason for that eluded him completely, as Laura's had been purple mist and tiny bats. Carmilla's he hadn't seen at all.
He'd also learned that the Shadow Whip wasn't the only thing he could form out of his blood. It was possible, with a mere thought, to harden blood into dagger like shards that could be thrown. Testing them against nearby trees, rocks, and the ground had shown him that they would cut into just about anything and would do serious damage on their way.
Unbeknownst to his parents, he had also some testing with his new Storm Sword, with John's Pershan's help. He had asked a few of his men if they would volunteer to touch the blade. Those that agreed found themselves stunned and lying on the ground with cramped muscles and pounding headaches. If just lightly touching the blade resulted in such effects, Gabriel could only imagine what it would do when it was used like the weapon it was. To his surprise, once the men had recovered from touching the blade, they had invited him to have a few pints with them. Soldiers would always be brothers, even after one of them had become a vampire it seemed.
"I feel as though there is more," he added, "because I can feel something else, but it seems like it is... 'sleeping' for lack of a better word. No matter how hard I reach for it, I can't touch it."
Mother reached over and patted his arm. "I'm sure it will come to you in time."
"I hope so."
"Are you going out tonight?" Father asked.
Gabriel shrugged. "I don't know. Something tells me that I've learned all I can for now, but it can't hurt to keep trying."
"Don't forget to relax once in a while, son. I don't want you to run yourself into the ground."
Gabriel gave his father a disbelieving look. "Relax? I have too much to do and too much to worry about to even think about relaxing."
Mother's hand lightly squeezed his arm. "It wouldn't do for you to exhaust yourself, Gabriel, and you have a son that needs his father in his life. You haven't visited with Trevor in days, and he's been asking for you."
Gabriel looked down at the table, chewing on his lip. He hadn't been to see Trevor in a while, had he?
"If you do go out," Father suggested, "maybe you should go exploring, or riding, or flying with Delilah even. Just do something to relax for a change. You've been working too hard."
The rest of the meal passed in silence, and his parents went off in search of their bed after an exchange of goodnights. Gabriel leaned back in his chair with a quiet sigh and raked his hair back from his face before he abruptly stood up and strode out of the room. Delilah squeaked and flew after him.
It was a quick walk to the nursery, and Delilah caught up to him and latched onto his sleeve as he walked in. Trevor's guards didn't even bat an eye as he passed them. The night nursery was quiet and dark, but his night vision easily allowed him to see Trevor curled up in his little bed, sound asleep. Gabriel hesitated at the sight, but then he walked forward anyway and sat down next to his son.
"Trevor," he called softly, not wanting to wake Anna, who was asleep in her own bed nearby, "Trevor, wake up."
Trevor stirred and rolled over onto his back. "Papa?" he murmured in a sleepy voice as his eyes peeped open. Gabriel smiled faintly at the sight and scooped the child up out of bed and into his arms. He took a quick few seconds to wrap the child in the quilt from the bed, and then he moved without a sound to the nearest window and opened it. A quick listen informed him that everyone else was still soundly asleep, and he nestled Trevor securely against him and jumped out.
Trevor squealed and giggled when they landed, and Gabriel smiled at him. "Enjoyed that, did you?"
"Again, Papa!"
Gabriel placed the tip of a claw against the child's lips. "Shhh, we don't want to wake anyone up. We don't want to get caught, do we?"
Trevor giggled again as Gabriel moved quickly around the house in the direction of the stables. The two stable hands were asleep in the hayloft, and he wondered for a moment if the horses would even allow him to approach them. Other animals fled from him, but Mother had told him that the carriage horses hadn't cared when he had been close by, so perhaps...
A snort and a stamp of a hoof greeted them as they went into the darkened interior of the stable, and Gabriel's eyes immediately found the source; a large black stallion that eyed them with suspicion as they approached. Trevor giggled and reached out of the blanket to touch its nose, but it tossed its head and snorted.
"You're a handsome boy." Gabriel murmured, and the horse tossed its head again, as if in agreement. "Would you like to go out for a run?"
It eyed him for a moment, and then it tossed its head a third time.
It was a simple matter to walk the horse out of the stable, just as it was easy to climb up onto its back, even with Trevor held securely in one arm. Gabriel spent a moment settling the child down in front of him, and he held onto him with one arm, while he gripped the horse's mane with his other hand.
"Hang on tight, Trevor."
He nudged the horse into a walk with his heels, and once they were far enough away from the stable that waking the stable hands wouldn't be an issue, he urged it into a trot, and then into a canter. Trevor giggled and clapped his hands in delight, and Gabriel smiled at the sound. Delilah squeaked in his ear, and then she launched herself from his arm and flew up into the sky above.
"Go faster, Papa!" Trevor squealed.
"Faster it is!" Gabriel dug his heels int the horse's side, and the animal seemed to leap forward into a full gallop as Trevor shrieked with delight. They streaked across the open grounds and into the forest that surrounded the lawns and gardens, and the horse nimbly leaped over fallen tree trunks and charged through trickling streams without breaking stride. Delilah swooped and dove through the canopy above them at first, but she was quickly left behind, unable to keep up with the charging horse. The animal's heartbeat pounded in Gabriel's ears as they trampled through the undergrowth, and just below it he could hear Trevor's. Delilah's was barely audible to him as she fell behind, but he somehow knew where she was and that she was fine on her own.
He finally slowed the horse down to a walk once they were a good distance into the woods, and Trevor laughed.
"That fun, Papa!"
Gabriel smiled down at the child. "Yes, it is." he agreed, and he glanced up at the moon to check the time. "But we've been out here longer than I thought, so we should head back. I don't want to keep you awake all night." Trevor chose that moment to make a jaw cracking yawn, followed by a sleepy smile. "Time for you to go back to bed, I think."
It was a slow, easy ride back to the house, and Gabriel was able to stable the horse without waking the hands, and then it was time figure out how he was going to get himself and Trevor inside without anyone noticing. It would be simple to just go through the front door, but that would require being seen by Trevor's guards, and he didn't want that. Trevor's heartbeat slowed as he drifted off to sleep, and Gabriel looked up at the stone brick walls that made up the house's exterior walls, and then he looked down at his empty left hand. He stared at it for a second, before he glanced up at the wall again through his hair. He had seen the lesser vampire do it, so it stood to reason that...
He stepped up to the wall and felt the faded heat from the sun come off the stone as he reached out and placed his hand against it. His fingers easily found traction of what appeared to be at first glance a smooth surface, but his eyesight easily allowed him to see the tiny pits and cracks that marred it. Hitching Trevor up and holding him tight, he raised one foot and wedged it against the wall and used it to push himself up.
Gabriel knew that his strength had greatly increased, but even he found his eyes widening at how easy it was to pull his weight, along with Trevor's, up the wall. He leapt up from that first foothold, and his hand was able to catch on a stone above his head. There was no outcropping, and for a moment he wondered if this was what a spider felt like as he used his feet to boost them up even higher. It took only a few bounds to reach the open nursery window. He climbed through to see Anna sitting up in bed and looking at him with wide eyes. He held his fingers to his lips and smiled faintly, and she giggled and laid back down.
He got Trevor tucked back into bed with no difficulty., just as Delilah came flapping and squeaking through the window. She alighted on his shoulder, and her annoyed chirps couldn't be mistaken for anything but a scolding.
"Don't give me that." he told her in a quiet voice. "I knew you were fine, and you knew where to find me."
She made an angry squeak and leveled a bat sized glare at him.
"Well it's not my fault that you didn't catch up to us sooner."
Another angry squeak, and he reached out to pet her between her ears. Her ire vanished instantly at the touch, and she relaxed against his arm.
"Am I forgiven now?"
Angry squeak.
"What if I promise to never leave you behind like that again?"
Delilah went still; she was thinking hard, and then she chirped in agreement.
Gabriel rubbed her between her ears again as he smiled. "What a pair we make, girl." He walked out of the room then, nodded to Trevor's guards as he left the nursery, and walked down the dark hallway. "Now let's find us something to keep us entertained until sunup, shall we?" Delilah squeaked, and Gabriel laughed quietly as he walked down the hall.
******
"We are gathered here today..."
Gabriel listened faintly to Caleb's words as he scanned the chapel from his place hidden in the rafters. He was hanging from one of the horizontal beams high up near the peak of the roof where it was unlikely that anyone below would spot him. Delilah was hanging beside him, and she stretched her wings and yawned in boredom. She grumbled something and then wrapped herself in her wings and closed her eyes to sleep through the rest of the wedding.
Gabriel stretched his own leathery wings and resisted the urge to join her. He wasn't even sure why he was in his current position in all honestly. Why did he care about his cousin's wedding? It wasn't as though Adelar liked him or anything. True, he was certain that Adelar had had something to do with Volpe finding him and his mother on the road, but the risk of being seen by others outside the family, even if he was in bat form and hanging in the shadows up in the roof, was very real and very dangerous. Hopefully, if anyone did see him, they would think that a pair of bats had gotten in somewhere and wouldn't consider the possibility that one of them was a vampire.
"Therefore if any man can shew any just cause, why they may not lawfully be joined together, let him now speak, or else hereafter for ever hold his peace."
Adelar didn't say anything, and Gabriel felt some surprise at that. He had half expected for his cousin to use anything to get out of the wedding, and that including objecting during the ceremony, but the man kept his mouth shut. Gabriel could smell his nervousness and unease from all the way up in the rafters. He knew from his father that Adelar had not wanted to marry his soon to be bride for reasons that everyone gossiped about when said bride was out of hearing range, and Gabriel counted himself lucky that he had been able to choose his wife, even if it hadn't been much of a choice really. Marie had been the only one for him; he had no intention of ever trying to find another, even if his vampirism was miraculously cured in the future.
He shook his small head clear of those thoughts as the couple began reciting their vows. The soon to be Julia Cronqvist said her vows with a wide smile and bright eyes, and the tone of her voice made it clear that she was happy with her marriage. Adelar spoke his vows in a voice that squeaked like an boy's, and his voice shook as he stumbled over his words a few times. Below in the packed chapel, Gabriel could see his mother's lips twitching, while Father's eyes danced with mirth. Cordrin glared at his son, while his wife dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief. Gabriel looked from then to Adelar, and the look on his cousin's face gave him pause.
Adelar's face was pale, and there was a fine sheen of sweat across his brow. Gabriel cocked his head; his cousin had the look of one that was fighting the urge to be sick. Any amusement he had been feeling seemed to dry up and vanish then. Adelar was clearly unhappy about the marriage, yet was being pushed into it by his father and uncle. Gabriel frowned; he would have to talk with his parents later on about this, because he certainly wasn't finding it funny anymore. With that thought, he released his grip on the rough wood of the rafters and fluttered down and out of the chapel. Delilah quickly followed.
******
A few hours later found him in his father's study with his parents, once the wedding was over and the new couple had retired to their rooms. He hoped that Adelar wouldn't sick up over his new wife in their wedding bed.
"Did you see his face?" Father said as he started to laugh. "I was expecting for the boy to faint right where he stood."
Mother chuckled. "Poor Julia didn't notice it. I expect she's in for a disappointment right about now."
Gabriel licked his lips as he recalled his own nervousness on his wedding night, certain that he was going to mess it up somehow and disappoint Marie. He'd been as much of a virgin as she had been then, and it had taken them several tries to find what worked and what didn't. Adelar, married to a woman that he did not like, much less love, likely had it worse.
"I don't find this funny." he said as he stared at the floor, and then he looked up at his parents as their laughter stopped, and they looked at him in surprise.
"What's not to find?" Father asked.
"Because Adelar is terrified, that's what. You know that he didn't want to marry that woman, yet you pushed him into it, and he's dreading spending his life with her. You wouldn't do that to me, so why him? What about Julia? How's she going to feel when she finally figures out that her husband doesn't want her?"
Father sighed, ran his hand down his face, and moved over to the nearby cabinet, where he poured himself a glass of mead. He took a quick sip and then turned to face Gabriel.
"I know it looks cruel," he said, "but I need you to realize that even though Adelar held the title of heir apparent to this family for 33 years, not once did anyone approach me about marrying a daughter to him. His position alone made him quite the catch, but no one was interested. There have been rumors swirling around for years that he was a homosexual, and I don't think I need to tell you what that could mean for us. Hopefully, this will put most of them to rest.
"And frankly, Gabriel, Julia is the perfect person to keep him out of our hair. She'll keep him in line, which will make if difficult for him to follow whatever schemes his father comes up with. I don't doubt for an instant that Cordrin is still trying to find a way to remove you and Trevor from the picture, just as I'm certain that he'll use Adelar to do it instead of getting his own hands dirty. Julia will hang on Adelar every spare second she has, which will make it nearly impossible for him to act on his father's plans." Father drank the rest of the mead. "I know that none of this is truly Adelar's fault; his father is pulling his strings as though he was a puppet, but at any time, he could refuse to fall into line and come to me, but he has not done that. Until he stops following his father around like a lost puppy, there is little I can do for him."
"He's your nephew; don't you care about him at all?"
Father sighed again and sat down. "I do, though I don't act like it. When he was small, I tried to be what his father refused to be, but my darling brother went out of his way to sabotage any such relationship whenever he could. He certainly doesn't love his son, but he won't allow anyone else to do so either. Part of it, I'm sure, is because I brought Caleb here, which he's never forgiven me for."
"Caleb?" Gabriel gave his father a confused look. "What does he have to do with anything?"
"I'm sure you've noticed the resemblance between Caleb and your uncle?" Mother said. Gabriel nodded, and Father spoke.
"It's not something I announced or made known, though I'm sure most do know. Caleb is your cousin. He's the bastard son of Cordrin and a peasant woman from the area. Traditionally in this family, if a bastard child is born, the child is raised in the household, but because of their illegitimate birth, they cannot be officially acknowledged, and they cannot carry the name. Cordrin refused to do even that. From what I understand, he refused all contact with the woman once their tryst was over, and she raised Caleb herself for several years.
"When Caleb was seven, his mother became ill, and she came to me, begging me to take her son in so he wouldn't end up a petty thief on the streets once she was gone. I agreed, and she kissed him goodbye and walked out of the house. She died a few weeks later.
"Of course my brother was furious when he learned that I had brought his bastard child into the house, and he tried to have him thrown out multiple times. When that didn't work, he resorting to making the boy's life as difficult as possible. I often had to retrieve him from that little hiding place in the attic, and I ended up sending him to seminary simply to get him away from his father, so he could have some peace."
"And he still came back here?" Gabriel asked. "I would have stayed as far away as possible after that."'
"This is Caleb's home, and we are his family, even if that is never acknowledged."
"So what does all of that have to do with Adelar?"
"He couldn't get at me directly for bringing Caleb into the house, so he used it to undermine things between me and Adelar. He told him that I cared more about a bastard than I did the heir. Adelar, being young and wanting to please his father, believed every word of it, and things between us suffered as a result."
Gabriel absently scratched his head. "It would be so much easier if you could just throw Cordrin out of the family."
"Keep your friends close..." Father began.
"...and your enemies closer." Gabriel finished.
Father nodded. "I've thought about it multiple times, Gabriel, especially when I began to suspect that he had something to do with your kidnapping years ago. Right now, however, he must tread carefully because any attempt to hurt me or you could hurt the entire family. What good is finally becoming Lord Cronqvist if we are shunned and outcast for harboring a vampire? If I disown him, then he will have nothing to lose, and a man with nothing to lose is very dangerous."
"I just hope this doesn't come back to haunt us later." Gabriel said quietly. "You've given Adelar a good reason to hate you now."
"That has occurred to me, but I doubt he'll do anything without his father's permission. Let me worry about that, Gabriel; you have enough on your shoulders right now."
Gabriel nodded silently, but he couldn't help but think of the sick look on his cousin's face and wonder where it was going to lead them.
******
William threw another log into the fire and reached out to warm his hands. Things were set and ready – now he just needed to wait for the right time to act. He had been in contact with a few people, and everyone was ready and willing to do their part. They couldn't act now though. No, they had to wait. Wait for Lord Cronqvist to relax, wait for Gabriel to drop his guard. Once that happened though, he and Cecil would move swiftly. If things worked out, once it was all said and done, Gabriel would be prepared, Trevor would be under their control, and anyone that tried to stop them would be dead. Satisfied that everything was in place, William turned his attention to preparing the evening meal as the sun began to descend on the western sky.
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Squeeeeeee! A fellow Queen fan! *pounces* Who Wants to Live Forever and The Show Must Go On are my favorites, and I've thought for years that Who Wants to Live Forever just slots right in with Castlevania. (Both versions of it.)
Act III is on the way. Hopefully, it'll churn it out faster as it has must faster pacing from the get go.
Thanks for reading. :)
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I am indeed a Queen fan. Who Wants to Live Forever, Princes of the Universe, and Kurgan's Theme, count amongst my faves, along with The Show Must Go On, White Queen, and March of the Black Queen. I'm not massively keen on Adam Lambert though nowadays as the vocalist, he just seems a bit cocky and ...ungenuine. I far prefer Kerry Ellis singing with them. :)
Thinking about Queen songs, I'm thinking that The Show Must Go On could fit LoS quite well, either for Gabe or Alucard... for that matter, as could Princes of teh Universe, thinking about it some more. March of the Black Queen could fit Carmilla, while White Queen could work for Marie. :) Kurgan's Theme could possibly work for Satan, playing on the fact that Gabriel and Alucard are played by Scotsmen... *Cackles*