Chapter Text
"Thanks."
Pulled from his--rather maudlin--thoughts, Alucard looked over at the bed. Usually, he had a good sense of time, but with everything which had happened, all the waiting and stress, he'd lost track of it. All he could say was that it had been some time since Trevor had woken, learned what had happened and would happen in his new life, and laid down on the bed. He couldn't be blamed for such an action; Really, considering his family name as Belmont, he was adjusting to his new circumstances surprisingly well.
But that was partly why Alucard was so surprised to hear... thanks? Not from Trevor, surely. How could he have decided not only to accept his current state, but also thank Alucard for it? That didn't sound right.
Alucard stretched, stiff from holding still for so long, and asked, "What do you mean?"
Trevor rolled to face him, moving as carefully as Alucard was. He looked just as tired as before, a little more wan, which spoke of a need for more blood, and with the sorts of heaviness to his eyes which said he would have been crying--or close to it--had he still been human. His transformation meant he was still too young to give up blood so easily though.
"I mean thank you," Trevor said. His voice was rough, but sincere. "It's... fuck. Don't get me wrong, it's a long time, but."
He started shifting to sit up, hands pushing back at his hair as he clearly struggled with his words. Alucard waited, patient despite feeling the pause like a wet cloth being wrung out. He knew this would be important, and he wasn't going to scare Trevor off whatever he needed to say just to break the tension.
"You- you made sure I wouldn't be a danger. To other humans. To Sypha. You said the bond is like... a promise, right?" He glanced up from under his lashes and waited for Alucard to nod. "So. I won't be a danger to her even a year from now. Or five. And you don’t- I don't know why you did it, but you did. And you promised to keep... to stay... Shit. Uh. You could have just killed me."
"No," Alucard said immediately, fiercely. "No, I could not have."
Trevor raised his head, eyeing him. "...I didn't mean... Well. Anyway, thanks. For helping."
"You don't have to thank me for something I chose to do on my own." Alucard felt himself leaning back in the chair again. He knew he should get up though, get some blood ready for Trevor. "It was a shitty situation. And I picked the only option I felt- The only one I was willing to do."
Trevor grunted, but kept his gaze on Alucard. Feeling antsy, Alucard dragged himself out of his chair, stretching properly and moving to the curtains at the window. It was dark outside, as Alucard expected, but the moon was still bright, having barely waned from full. He tied the curtains aside to bring a little more light to the room.
When he turned, he watched Trevor squint into the moonlight, blinking a few times before his eyes adjusted. "Fuck, that's way brighter than I thought it would be."
"Your eyesight has changed. And you haven't had a chance to see more than a dark room. You'll adjust. Eventually you will be able to move between a brighter room and one not lit at all without even thinking of how your eyes adjust." With eyes on the blood container he poured from, Alucard listened as Trevor hummed again, then the rustle as he presumably stood from the bed.
Alucard kept himself focused on both getting some blood warmed and listening for anything Trevor might be doing. He would need the blood in his system more often, since his newly turned status meant he'd used up a lot of magic and his body would still be adjusting.
Even knowing Trevor must have been deeply hungry, the hunter still managed to wrinkle his nose when Alucard called his name and held out the cup of blood.
"You need it."
"...Doesn't mean I have to like it."
Alucard sighed and held out the cup again. This time Trevor approached, but his nose only scrunched up further when he took it in his hands and sniffed.
"It doesn't smell right," he said.
Alucard took a whiff from where he stood. "It seems fine to me? My father was very particular when he stored blood."
Trevor hummed. "It's from Dracula's store?"
"Yes." Alucard shifted on his feet, hands feeling rather useless at his sides, so he crossed his arms. "He did still need to drink blood, though he was old enough it wasn't a severe need. And he kept some around for... for me, as well, while I was growing up. Some of it was donated." Most of it wasn't, he didn't say.
Trevor shook his head, apparently not surprised, but it wasn't what he focused on. "I mean it- it doesn't smell like, like what I tasted when I woke up."
"...How do you mean?" Alucard asked cautiously.
"I mean, it doesn't smell as good? Wasn't-?" And when Trevor's eyes flashed up to look at Alucard, at his neck, specifically, before he coughed and turned aside, it was clear he remembered where he'd found himself when he awoke.
"Ah." Alucard cleared his throat. "There's not much to be done about it. Though I can regenerate faster than humans, I still have a limited supply of blood. I also need to remain strong enough to keep an eye on you. You will have to get used to drinking standard human blood."
Trevor grumbled, shoulders still lifted in embarrassment. Even so, he sniffed at the cup again before raising it to his lips and chugging it down. He smacked his lips when finished, looking displeased.
"Didn't think there would be that much difference in flavor," he complained. He handed over the cup, which Alucard checked to make sure the blood had been drained.
"I suspect part of that is the expectation of a sire's blood, in fledglings." Alucard fidgeted with the cup before walking to place it aside on a table near the door. He stayed facing away when he said, "You will still have to drink some of my blood. I will check how much is expected, but given how most vampire fledglings can drink human blood immediately after turning, I do not expect we will have issues switching between them."
(Feeding the bond, the fledgling, keeping Trevor close, his self in Alucard's hands-)
"Uh, yeah. I guess." There was some rustling and Alucard turned back to see Trevor had taken a seat in the same chair Alucard had been in. It was... oddly satisfying. Especially when Trevor's head turned just a hair and his nostrils flared as if he was checking for Alucard's scent. "Do I really have to drink every couple of hours? Before, I felt like I had just finished, but I-" He looked uncomfortable, frowning as he said, "I was already feeling thirsty again when you got me that cup. I think. I felt colder."
"Chills and annoyingly heightened senses are signs of thirst. The amount of blood you need will be increased for the next few days, at least, and you will still have to feed regularly for a few months. After that, I expect, it will start to wane. It will be more like normal human meals, feeding about three times per day."
"Night."
"Per night," Alucard said, rolling his eyes up to the ceiling. "It will really only be after the ten years as a fledgling that you will be able to go a day without feeding."
"Great."
"You survived two decades eating every day. You will survive the same as a vampire."
"...Not every day."
Alucard frowned. Right, his past wandering about as an excommunicated outcast. Well, Alucard wouldn't let that stand now. Trevor was his to protect, to feed, to care for.
"You will drink often enough to keep yourself in good condition, and not go off into a hungry rampage, I will make sure of it," Alucard warned.
"I. I know you will." Trevor sounded unusually grateful.
Alucard just watched for a moment; Just thought. The bond felt fairly stable, all things considered. Despite the odd instincts which flared up, Alucard still felt in control of himself, and without too much influence from Trevor. He noticed a few things, like he could tell if Trevor was getting thirsty, or if he felt satisfied, as he was currently. Alucard could feel a little tug, telling him what direction Trevor was in, like the same sense which told Alucard when he was being watched--just a sort of increased awareness, focused on Trevor's presence. He didn't get a sense of Trevor's thoughts really--for which he was thankful--but he got a general sense of what he believed was emotion. At the moment, Trevor read as "content," with no particularly strong emotions. Alucard figured that aspect was to tell if Trevor was in trouble.
Alucard didn't need the bond to tell how Trevor was feeling though. After a few weeks with the man, he could tell by the way Trevor sat in the chair--legs slightly spread, torso leaned in Alucard's direction, hands casually rested on his thighs--that Trevor was being earnest. Alucard took a few steps forward to stand in front of him, watching as Trevor clocked him, but did not alter his open stance.
"You. Really trust me, don't you?" Alucard almost didn't believe it himself. Not even when Trevor nodded his head. "I would understand if you had reservations."
This time, Trevor was the one to sigh--with too much exaggeration Alucard thought--and roll his eyes up before locking them directly onto Alucard’s. Because of the recent feeding, the blue shone brightly, almost silver in the moonlight. "Alucard. You dumb bastard. I chose to trust you. Back in the Belmont Hold when you were using the mirror, on the road when we fought the night creatures, back in your fucking trap of a keep. You could have given me so many reasons not to trust you... and you gave me none. You didn't even make good on your threat when you were, I don't know, testing me. When we met," he added when Alucard frowned. "You bared your fangs, but you stayed far enough away to look me in the eyes. I. Alucard, I wouldn't have traveled with you unless I trusted you, your self control. And despite our- mm, whatever you call our arguing, I still do. You say you'd stop me from losing myself to bloodlust, so I believe it."
Alucard blinked. Then blinked again. He felt warmth in his heart, having nothing to do with the magic of the bond. Then it spread up to his face and behind his eyes, making it far more difficult to see than it should have been. He covered his eyes with a hand for a moment, unsure how to deal with the way he suddenly had to breathe around a mysterious obstruction in his throat.
"I think that's. The most words I've ever heard you say at once." Alucard's laugh sounded weak, a bit watery. "Didn't know you were capable of it."
"Shut up," Trevor said, the words somehow sounding softer than usual. "Doesn't mean I'm willing to only take your word for it. Belmonts always test how things work."
Alucard sighed, feeling a fond smile on his face as he wiped his hand down it. "Typically in the midst of battle, I presume?"
"That's only how things worked out with the whip because I didn't have time," Trevor retorted. "Now, apparently I have way... way more." He cleared his throat and stood, rubbing the side of his neck, pausing for a moment over where the vampiric-turning bite used to reside. It was only a memory, now, grown over with smooth, unbroken skin. "But I learned best by example."
"Example." Alucard tilted his head to the side. "Are you suggesting I test something for you?"
Trevor nodded. "Show me how you will 'make sure' I don't lose myself. Show me how you can use this- this lord-servant bond."
Alucard felt his frown return, deeper than before. "I don't- I told you I won't be misusing it by-"
"I know, I know. It took me a while to accept, but I was thinking when I was on the bed you know-" Trevor punched Alucard lightly at the little smirk. Alucard tensed, but apparently instinct read the action exactly as Trevor had intended it, as a playful jab. "-And I told you I trust you. I think this is the fastest way for me to, to figure some things out."
"And that would be?"
"That. That it is really safe for me to... to be around other people. That no matter how I act, or how far I am, you can stop me, even if you can't reach me in time."
"This is really important to you, isn't it?" Alucard asked. Trevor nodded, a bit jerky, but he didn't back down. "Neither of us actually slept during that break. And you were actually on the bed."
Trevor frowned. "Do I have to sleep at night?"
"You need more rest because of the toll on your body."
"Whatever. You're avoiding my request."
Alucard thought. He could... maybe do both. His instincts seemed happy enough with the idea of caring for him anyway. And Trevor, who stood tall, but with a subtle shake in his limbs, blinking back any tiredness he felt, deserved to be taken care of.
"Fine," Alucard said. Though it clearly surprised Trevor when he lifted his hands to pat both Trevor's shoulders. Yup, definitely a little wobble there. Alucard pulled on the magic resting in his core, and infused his words the same way he'd felt when feeding Trevor before. "Go to the bed."
Trevor looked indignant for a split second, then confused as his body began to move, probably without his conscious thought, towards the bed. He made a little surprised sound, and huffed as he set himself down on the mattress. "That. Huh. Weird."
"Lay down."
"Hey," Trevor said, expression looking as if he tried to struggle a bit, but his body moved smoothly to pull up his feet and scoot him so his head aligned with the pillows before he ended up horizontal. "Again?"
"You said you wanted to test it out." Alucard looked him over for a moment before tugging the blankets out from under him. "It looks like the bond helps you understand the intention behind my commands. Otherwise you might have just laid directly backwards where you sat. Isn't that interesting?"
"What's interesting is your sudden investment in this- Are you tucking me in?"
"I told you, you need more rest."
A little laugh escaped Trevor, which turned into a yawn. Alucard took the moment to look at Trevor's fangs. He was a vampire. He was under Alucard's power tutelage protection. It was a change in their relationship Alucard intended to give the respect it deserved.
"Don't know how much I actually want to sleep," Trevor said, sounding a bit nervous.
Alucard nodded. "I will help."
"Help-?"
Trevor stilled as Alucard bent over, pressing a palm to his cheek. The cheek was cold, but the stubble there felt intimately real, grounding.
"Have a restful sleep," Alucard whispered. "I will be here."
And before Trevor's eyelids closed, a soft smile stole across his face, his whole bearing relaxing. Then he slipped into sleep. Alucard kept his promise; He moved to the opposite end of the bed, making sure to leave enough room not to crowd Trevor, and laid down. He closed his eyes, hoping for only a bit of rest, enough to keep his wits about him. But with Trevor's deep breathing and little snorts, with the slow, calming beat of his heart so nearby, Alucard found himself drifting into dreams too.
For once, though, no nightmares awaited. Buoyed by hope, Alucard truly rested.
And if they woke a couple hours later with Trevor plastered to Alucard’s back--because he was a cuddly sleeper--and his nose squished in Alucard’s throat--because he was thirsty--then what else was there to do but accept the embrace. They could figure things out along the way, so long as they worked together.