Chapter Text
He could smell smoke. It was fresh, dark and thick, fed by mounds of dry wood, and there was a woman on the stake. With her hair covered with soot and darkened by the swirling smoke, her once sun-bright hair was stained until it looked almost brown or black. Like his mother’s hair.
Heart leaping into his throat, Trevor shoved his way past the mob that had gathered, a mob quiet with discontent as the pleading had stopped before he had reached them. He had rode past the broken burnt-out husk of this women’s home, picked up the singed locket that was left behind and trampled into the dirt road leading to and from the scientist’s house. The Church burns. The church burns innocents, those it doesn't care for, and are frightened by.
Leaping into the heat of the fire, ignoring the crowd's collective gasp, he felt the flames lick at his boots, the buffeting heat as he slid out his knife. The woman, Lisa of Lupu his mind whispered, choked as he flung his cloak around her still alive but burnt form. Slicing apart her bonds, he gently carried her out of the flames, ignoring the guards and priests that tried to stop him and fled past them. He silently thanked his forethinking, his shirt with the proudly stitched Belmont crest was in his pack and he was wearing nothing to identify him specifically from the Belmont family. Nonetheless, the Church probably would blame it on them anyway. Taking Elise by her reins, he mounted her easily, even with Lisa in his arms.
“Go girl, into the forest.” He softly said. Elise would gallop them to safety he knew it in his bones.
The woman let out a body-wracking cough, eyes blinking, still streaming tears, and her mouth quivering. There was no doubting her fear, but she was injured and he would not let an innocent woman die. He would not let the Church burn a family down again. Hopefully, there was a way he could contact her son or husband but before he even finished the thought, he had entered the fringes of the city exactly where Lisa's house once stood. A house full of memories now to be forgotten in memory, to be ashes thrown into the wind and trampled to the ground.
An old woman looked at Lisa and her soot-covered hair spilling out from the cocoon of his cloak, crying out in relief.
“You've found her! Oh, dear Doctor, what have they done?”
“Tell her husband and son that she is safe. We will be three towns away. Do not challenge the Church. You did not see us. We did not have this conversation.”
At this, Lisa’s eyes fluttered again, and yet another cough, dry and painfully forced its way out of her smoke-filled throat. The old woman sighed, eyes tearing up, shaking frail old hands clasped together in prayer but replied in a strong and firm voice.
“Aye. I’m but an old woman with poor eyesight and even poorer health. This old one saw nothing. Please take care of her. She’s good, not a witch-”
Trevor gently looked her in the eyes, nodding. His quiet reply was rough from the smoke and tightly restrained emotions.
“I will. I know witches. She is not one.” His eyes scrunched tightly as he tried not to think of little Jeanette and her love for science, her love for what the church would deem as black magic but was instead just healing. “She is a scientist. A damn good one at that.”
With that said, the message would be passed on, he rode away with the injured woman, into the thick of the forest toward the next village.
The sun rose slowly, unseen in the dark depths of the trees, canopies showing only slivers of light. Trevor found a little clearing with a clear bubbling brook. There were also fresh herbs, and he could hear the sound of animals scurrying about, good for hunting. The woman was unconscious but her chest rose evenly, a bit weak but still there. Trevor gently placed her on the ground near the brook, tilting her head back to help her breathe easier. He sighed for God knows how many times. Leon would skin him alive, Monica would mutter profanities and Talia would look disapprovingly at him. But they know he would not change his mind, he would have no regrets about saving an innocent. He had already missed meeting them, but at this time they would have arrived and heard the news of a supposed witch rescued by an unknown. They were smart enough to figure things out. At least, he hoped they would be, after all, they were older and had more experience than a fifteen-year-old, even if he was a Belmont.
Mechanically, he tended her injuries, soothing the furrows on her face creased with pain. Trevor was a little worried, the smoke she inhaled was not good for the lungs but the burns on her feet were more concerning. Some places had been burnt black, necrosis taking over. Taking out his medicinal bag, he set out to boil water and cut the aloe vera plants he had seen along the way. Light gently cascaded through the tree canopies, the familiarity of the work lulling in into a calmness that drained out the remaining tension in his body. It was light but the Church wouldn’t have been able to track them through the forest. None of them was skilled enough and certainly wouldn't be used to travelling so deeply and away from home comforts. Besides, Elise was a Belmont-trained horse, she was prepared for anything and certainly braver than the common horses, maybe stupidly so as Talia would like to point out. There was that one incident where instead of running away from the night creatures, Elise had decided the battle had gone on too long and reared back and kicked a night creature away with a solid thwap. It landed precisely into an open wound revealing its beating heart. The power of the kick had cracked the remaining ribs and crushed the opened heart. It was a semi-quick death for the creature. The Belmont family had quickly eliminated the rest of the group but they still marvelled at the horse’s bold action. They joked about it from time to time, the teasing increased especially after Elise pretty much adopted Trevor, herding him and dragging him away from danger. Speaking of her, she was flicking her ears in contentment, drinking her fill of the cool stream.
Humming a half-remembered song, he was too occupied with applying the aloe vera to see Lisa’s eyes flutter open and glance blearily down at him. Her crystal-blue eyes categorized and calculated the scene before her, an unknown man tenderly treating her burn wounds. She could only remember half-pleading to Vlad, her husband and the thoughts of her son. The memories of fire and smoke rose like a hidden snake amongst the sand, screaming danger and helplessness. Her heart ached, and one of her hands came to rest on her breast to try and relieve the pain as she continued to watch the boy work methodically. The movement caught his eyes and he was startled, his own blue eyes meeting hers. He paused, hands fluttering a bit as he was lost for words. She let a small smile grace her face, the corners of her eyes crinkling in amusement.
“Go on,” She rasped, voice rough but still clear, “You’re doing a good job.”
‘Trevor.” He blurted out, before blinking at his own loudness. Awkwardly, he shuffled as he continued to apply the aloe vera onto the remaining burns, eyes darting away before returning to her, not quite looking her in the eyes again.
“Trevor.” She whispered, before letting out a dry painful cough.
Trevor immediately handed her his flask, letting the cool stream of water dribble into her parched mouth. She wasn't aware of how thirsty she was until she tried to use her hands to tip more of the water. It was instinctual, however, she composed herself, knowing logically that what Trevor was doing was right.
Finishing the flash, she repeated again, “Trevor,” this time letting the name roll on her tongue playfully, head tilting to the side. “Thank you, Trevor.”
“S’t not a problem.” He immediately replied. “Just doing my job.”
They lulled into a comfortable silence, Lisa struggling to keep her eyes open despite the light that had illuminated the small clearing.
“My husband-” She sleepily intoned, half-demanding, half-pleading.
“He will know. The old lady in your neighbourhood will pass on the message I’m sure.”
“Mrs Djuvara?”
At this, Trevor shrugged. He wasn't quite sure but it was probably right.
“Told her to tell your husband and son you’ll be three towns over.”
Her eyebrows creased, this time in confusion rather than pain.
“That’s rather specific.”
Letting out a grunt, Trevor grumbled uncomfortably. “Excommunicated.” His tone left no further questions.
“Ah. I see.” She pondered a while, her head still a little too clouded to allow a clear train of thought. “How old are you?”
“If you're worried about modesty-” He was interrupted by a relatively weak smack in the face before Lisa blurted out apologies. He smiled, albeit a little crookedly, amusement clear on his face as he gave her some fresh berries and dried meat.
“I’m a married woman with a child” She intoned hotly, arms crossed and a rather dark scowl across her face. “And I’m a doctor, I've seen far more and know more things than you do about the body.”
At this Trevor couldn’t help but chuckle fondly. Oh she and Leon would get along like a house on fire he was sure. Though that might be a little too soon of a joke. Monica would adore her, Jeanette would probably worship the ground she walked on and Father and Mother would just sigh and add another name to the family friend list.
“I’m fifteen.”
The silence stretched on for a while until Lisa made another remark. “Why did you save me? I was declared a witch if you haven't noticed yet.”
Trevor let the silence fester a bit, teeth worrying his bottom lip as he contemplated best how to answer. She didn’t even blink at his declaration of being excommunicated. Usually, even the most unbelieving folk would look a little wary. She was a scientist too, something the Church despised yet hearing the stories from others, she had been doing her good work for a long time without too much trouble. Finally, he sighed. He reached into his pack, drawing out the wrinkled but well-kept tunic with his family crest. Showing it to her, he said evenly, unsure of whether or not this was actually a good idea.
“I’m a Belmont. I protect innocents.”
This time, she had a visible response, eye wide with a bit of fright but it faded to a cautious weariness.
“A Belmont saved me? My husband will be so thrilled.” Throwing her head back she let out a bit of a hysterical laugh, last night's events finally catching up to her. “Oh, Fate be kind. All I ask of you is don’t kill my son. My husband, mmh.” Letting her head roll slightly, she continued with a rather humorous tone, “You’d probably have a heart attack. And try to punch him. Or maybe try to kill him first. Unsuccessfully of course.”
Trevor paused, worry creeping up his spine. “That’s… rather specific. And also, why would I kill your son? I doubt he’s done anything wrong except… I dunno, steal an apple or two, maybe. Or fucked a pretty barmaid. Or cheated at cards?”
At this Lisa let a cryptic smile crawl across her face, before patting his cheek gently.
“You’re too kind. It’s nice to know there are still good people out there.” She said with such seriousness, the humour falling from her face. It was heart-breakingly genuine and Trevor was left even more wrong-footed than before. They kept silent as the day slowly passed by, with Trevor carrying Lisa wrapped in his cloak and riding Elise into the forest so that they could reach the second town before the light faded. By sunset, they had long passed the second town, Elsie keeping up a steady trot, still head held high and tail swishing, ears flickering. By the time the moon reached halfway across the night sky, they almost made it to the third town. However, this time, Elsie stopped abruptly. Nose flaring, ears pricked up, she shook her mane uneasily, letting out a nervous snort. There was a distant howl.
Lisa looked pensive as Trevor gently placed her down next to a tree, hidden in the shadows surrounded by a cluster of bushes. He readied his whip as his sixth sense tingled, Elise keeping a firm stance in front of Lisa, covering her general location further. The tiny hairs on the back of his neck prickled as he stepped slowly forward, onto the main road. They could see the distant lights of the third town and each side of the road, no travellers in sight. Another howl sounded, but this time even closer. Letting Vampire Killer dangle from his hand, Trevor prepared himself, eyes darting to and fro. Lisa called out urgently to him, “What are you doing?”
“There are monsters coming. Powerful ones. Keep your head down, stay quiet.” He hissed, uneasiness settling in his stomach as his stance widened, his chin tucked in and eyes alert.
“Wait-”
Before she could finish her statement, a large looming shadow consolidated into a solid form, throwing out an arm, knocking Trevor backwards right into the path of a large growling white wolf. Cursing, he let the moment of the blow send him somersaulting over the wolf instead. Twisting his body in an incredible display of acrobatics, he let his whip wrap around the wolf’s head, creating a loose muzzle. In that brief second, he made eye contact with golden eyes, almost human-like. Before he let himself dwell any further, he yanked on the whip tightly letting the moment of his fall back to the ground tighten Vampire Killer further. The scent of burning flesh filled the air as muffled yelps sounded from the wolf who reared up backwards pulled by the whip like it was a leash. Twin voices cried out in panic,
“ADRIAN!”
Just as he landed, the vampire that stood at least eight feet tall swirled forward in a mass of clamouring shadows, black against the moonlit path. Its eyes were bright with rage, the sclera red as blood and it reached out with terrifying speed and clutched Trevor’s neck, squeezing his windpipe until he was seeing stars. He couldn't gasp, his lungs could not contract and expand and all he could see were the petrifyingly furious eyes. Briefly, he thought of that one time he had met a fae. It was old and its power had driven a little Trevor to his knees, unable to breathe from the sheer magical power it wielded naturally. This vampire had the same feeling, a cloying power that permeated his mouth and head.
He heard a loud snarling cease before a happy whine sounded. Out of the corner of his eyes, he thought light-headedly as a beautiful man, gold-spun hair nearly silver in the moonlight, embraced a lithe figure. He held Lisa in a bridal style, her head tucked into the crook of his neck. He looked like an angel, he thought deliriously before realising hysterically that wow, he really needed that air.
Vaguely, he could hear a woman cry out.
“Vlad! Stop that, you’re hurting the boy!”
In an instance, he was dropped. Gasping, he could taste the dirt road and see dark masses that were the forest merging with the vampire. Lisa. He scrambled to his feet, finding Vampire Killer and clutching it tightly. His knees throbbed. His ears were ringing. But he would stand. So he did. His voice caught, there was nothing but a loud exhale that exited him. Trevor’s heart beat harder, his eyes strained, horror drowning his soul but seeing them, utter shock paralysed his body.
The vampire loomed over the young man and Lisa but instead of attacking, draining them to leave dry husks, he embraced them tightly, the black cloak falling over the both of them cloaking them in safety, tucking his head between their heads and a broken whisper.
“Lisa.”
The young blond man whispered equally in awe and love, “Mother.”
His heart stopped. What the fuc-
Peering around his father’s shoulder and out of the dark cocoon, the blond man glared at him, a few fresh facial scars disappearing under his very own gaze. Their staring contest went on for longer, with only instinct stopping him from dropping his whip from shock. He wasn’t sure how he knew so certainly but the wolf he had just whipped was the man in front of him. Distantly, he remembered Lisa's rather odd comment on her son and husband. She was human. Her husband was a vampire. Her son was a fucking dhampir.
“What the fuck. ” he said out loud. “ What the fuck .” He repeated, his head spinning from the sudden revelation and also from being nearly choked to death.
In a daze, he could hear her muffled laughter. The vampire looked at him with some disdain, however, there was a relief in his eyes, and the gentle slope of his shoulders was a sharp contrast to the tense pulled-up high shoulders it had when attacking him.
“Trevor dear.” At the startled looks from both the vampire and dhampir, she merely chuckled before continuing unphased. “Meet my husband, Vlad Tepes.” At this, the vampire, Vlad, inclined his head slightly. Not quite a bow but it was enough. “And my son, Adrian Tepes.” The dhampir named Adrian executed a perfect courtesy bow.
Trevor stood there trying to remember how words worked. And once he did, his head shot up and he rasped out and panicked.
“ Tepes? As in motherfucking Dracula Tepes ?”
He vaguely registered there was a wordplay there but truly he was too panicked to do nothing but gape unbecomingly. Oh my God. He thought hysterically. Fucking hell, scratch Leon flaying me alive, Mother and Father will bury me alive first. He could hear his ancestors rolling in their graves, screeching at him to go drown himself in the nearest available water source.
The dhampir - Adrian, his mind unhelpfully supplied - snickered, bringing a hand elegantly to cover his mouth. The vampire, that was maybe but probably Dracula himself, let out a snort, his protective stance over Lisa and Adrian softened. He had verbally stated his existential crisis didn't he? Goddamnit it all. He was fifteen years old, and yes he may be Belmont but that doesn’t stop him from being human. And being human meant panicking over out-of-the-ordinary events. Which was this entire situation.
“Right. Okay.” He opened his mouth again before closing it after no further words came out. An internal Thalia snickered and an internal Monica commented he looked like a fish. He tried again.
“Right. Well, I would say it’s a pleasure but really, this is an absolute nightmare.”
He was a wonderful socially competent human being.
“So I would appreciate it if you don't, you know, try and kill me again?”
He could hear Mother’s facepalm from Wallachia and his older siblings snicker. He hadn't intended to phrase the don't kill me as a question but he was out of his depth. Way out of his depth. Lisa let out a soft laugh, her voice still a little rough but healing. She smiled at him, endearingly.
“Vlad won’t try that again.” She confidently said, as if she wasn’t commanding a thousand-year-old vampire. ‘To be honest, I'm surprised you hadn’t tried to punch him.”
Dryly, Trevor retorted before his brain caught up to what his mouth was saying. “Would you like me to try now?”
“ Trevor fucking Belmont, I’m going to kill you .”
Trevor let out a little yelp, eyes wide as the four of them faced the newcomers. Leon’s angry face emerged from the underbrush, Monica stomped loudly from beside him and Thalia trailed behind them, silent as an owl, her disappointed look drilling into his head.
“Oh, I’m so fucked.” He uttered, trying to give a winning smile but it came out as a grimace. “Hey before you drag my rotting corpse back home, can we just -you know? Talk?”
“ Trevor Belmont. ” Monica cracked her whip loudly, more bark than bite but he had a feeling that wouldn’t remain long. She smiled sweetly. “I’m going to hang you by your toes and feed you to the butterflies.”
He could feel his stomach plummet to a different dimension and cold sweat bead at his temples. Monica always had the most creative threats. There was a reason she was his second favourite sister. Little Jeanette was everyone’s favourite. Adrian made a small noise at the back of his throat, stepping out from behind his father and passing a beaming Lisa to Dracula.
“I have to say, I had expected the rest of you to be more uncouth-” He wasn’t able to finish his sentence before Lisa poked him hard on the cheek. He pouted, looking put out. “I’m not wrong, the Belmont swore worse than a sailor.” Adrian let the pout go and gave his mother a sweet smile, “Besides, it’s not as if you hadn’t already decided that one was your favourite.” He gestured at Monica who looked warily at the family of three.
“What are your names?” Leon inquired, his smile polite and tone no-nonsense. The smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. “I’m afraid we came a little late after the introductions were made.”
Trevor felt himself getting ready for another existential crisis and thankfully, it seemed he wasn’t the only one. He could see Dracula’s face twist like he was sucking on a lemon slice, his gaze on Lisa a little uncertain. Adrian was no longer as open, retreating to stand just a little behind his father. It was quite obvious to the other Belmonts that they were no ordinary family. The fangs and glowing eyes gave that away easily. His siblings could probably guess what they were but the fact they hadn't attacked already was a miracle.
Lisa, unphased, (though she married Count Dracula so that probably counted for something) exclaimed cheerily “I’m Lisa. Lisa of Lupu, a doctor and scientist. This is my husband, Vlad and my son, Adrian.”
For a brief moment, Trevor was grateful for her quick thinking. There were many people named Vlad, it was a rather common name and the name Adrian held no indication of Dracula. However, judging by his siblings' faces, they didn't buy the entire thing.
“Last name?” Leon took the lead again, eyes narrowing as he readied his long sword.
“Fahrenheit.” Dracula intervened gently, eyes narrowing too. It had returned to a normal white-blue sclera so that was a relief.
Thalia made a small sound, a hum. It was a very particular one, the one she used when she knew more than she was letting on. Whenever any of her siblings lied, she had a sixth sense to detect it. Needless to say, he didn’t like this.
“Tepes.”
Fucking hel-
“Vlad Dracula Tepes,” she continued on with a restrained smirk, “and his wife, Lisa Tepes, and son, Adrian Tepes.”
A startled look flashed over Dracula’s face, Adrian was doing a poor job of containing his surprise and Lisa had stopped smiling. Trevor knew Thalia was enjoying the absolute chaos she had just caused, the constipated looks that the rest of the Belmonts had and his own spiralling crisis.
“Lisa Tepes ? The good doctor is Dracula’s wife?” Monica snarled, her whip now dangerously coiled around her wrist, her stance readied to attack.
Leon interrupted, surprise coating his voice, “He has a son ?”
“Please, they aren’t doing any harm -” Lisa tried to plead.
Monica shrieked. “Aren't doing any harm ? Dracula literally just declared Targovriste to prepare for war.”
“For me.” Lisa argued back, beautifully fierce, her eyes burning brightly and her golden hair was a silver halo. “But I'm safe now so he will not attack innocents .” The last part was addressed directly to Dracula, her stare drilling into Dracula’s eyes, unrepentantly bold and fearless. The Belmont siblings looked in open surprise as Dracula visibly softened, an admiring light shone in his eyes as he gently promised her, tone soft and the love in it could not be denied.
“I will not harm innocents,” he agreed, “but the Church has overstepped.”
Adrian snapped in, his sudden outburst a sharp contrast to his contemplative silence. “They tried to kill you! They nearly succeeded!” He yelled, fangs bared and eyes wild. “If it wasn't for Belmont, our sworn enemy, you would be dead!” He gestured furiously in Trevor’s direction.
His near hysteric tone brought tears to Lisa’s face, her gentle hands cradling her son’s grief-struck face.
“My Adrian, my little cub.” She whispered sadly. “They know not what they do.”
Trevor was driven by a burning anger, bubbling up from the depths of his childhood memories that he shoved far away into a corner in his mind.
"For evil bastards to win power, all ordinary people have to do is stand aside and keep quiet." Trevor snapped, his rage infinite. “For evil to be in power, the people accepted they could do nothing so they did nothing .”
He could still hear the screaming of the mob, little Jeanette’s crying, he could hear her mother sob. She had never cried before in the entire time he had known her, not when she had to give birth, not when a night creature made her arm into a chew toy and tore it from her body. She had sobbed as her entire family was nearly killed, as their home and memories and everything dear to them was burnt beyond recognition and as they were chased out of their home. For hundreds of years, the Belmont family had lived there, grown and died for their people. To protect them. To serve them as was their job. Yet how were they repaid?
“The people are nothing but mindless sheep grazing aware but uncaring of the dangers until it rips them apart limb from limb .” Trevor spat out, blinking away tears that had clouded his vision. “They care not for the people they kill in the name of God. They bask in the knowledge that their God loves them because they are mindless killers, they are complicit in every fucking action the Chruch tells them to do and if they didn't comply then they are murderers for not standing up .”
He was breathing heavily, his own shock reflected in Lisa’s wide crystal-blue eyes. He was lightheaded, his voice had turned raspy, nearly giving out at the end of his tirade. Disappointed in himself he tore his eyes away from Lisa’s and stared resolutely at the ground, ignoring Monica's uncomfortable shuffling and Leon’s hitched breathing and Thalia’s heavy sigh.
He didn’t acknowledge how Adrian’s bright gold eyes shone with unshed tears and pain. He didn’t acknowledge how Dracula’s aged eyes looked at him with forlorn understanding.