Castlevania: Untested (22/27)

[patriciatepes]

Title: Untested
By: PatriciaTepes (AKA Patricia de Lioncourt @ fanfiction.net; PatriciaLouise @ TTH)
Chapter Title: Dark Ideas
Links to Other Chapters: Prologue Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Chapter Eighteen Chapter Nineteen Chapter Twenty
Fandom: Castlevania
Rating: Pg-13
Disclaimer: I don't own Castlevania, any related characters, or the images used below.  Yes, Aly (of Aly & AJ fame) is my model for my main OC.  But please, don't let my inability to draw hinder your imagination, as Ria really doesn't look exactly like that. :)
Summary: Adriana Smith is just a normal girl...or so she thinks. However, as her mother and she move into a house known as Belmont Manor and a strange storm and decoration enter her life, she will find that her mother has not told her the truth of her family...
Author's Notes: Enjoy!

Chapter 21: Dark Ideas

Sara's lips were pursed as Dracula and she stopped a few feet away from the clock tower door. She hugged her arms to herself and stared intently back towards the door that, behind which, sat Ria. She shook her head.

"She was crying," Sara said in a faraway voice. "We made her cry."

"She's a child. Children cry, Sara," Dracula said, neither comforting nor condescending.

Sara whirled on him, an anger-fueled fire in her eyes. The vampire king shook his head and flicked back his hair. It was a stare down now. Neither Sara nor Dracula moved or spoke for a long moment. Finally, Dracula smirked.

"Well? I suppose you intend to do as the girl told you to do—talk things out with me."

Sara gave a soft growl. "Would that be so bad?"

"It's pointless and time-wasting."

Sara moved to lean against the nearby wall. "How so?"

Dracula shrugged. "I killed you, Sara. Not directly, no, but I'm the reason you're like this. That's a grudge that doesn't go away. Does it?"

He gave her an expectant look, and she looked away. Her eyes were heavy-lidded and downcast for a few moments. Finally, she sighed.

"No. I hate to admit this—and you don't know just how much I hate it—but you're right. You killed me and many others. Innocents, all. Because your wife died. Both of them. You couldn't let go of their deaths, and I can't let go of mine. I can't forgive you, but…for Ria's sake…I can be civil with you, so long as you can see me."

Dracula arched a bow at her, cocking his head to the side. He gave another smirk.

"You really care for this girl, don't you? More than any other Belmont before her…except perhaps Leon," he said, smiling wider when Sara visibly flinched.

She only nodded in reply, not trusting herself to speak. Dracula nodded knowingly.

"Then I believe that both the girl and I were right. A combination of both the castle and your personal bond with her is what is making you visible to all now. You care for her like you would a friend or, dare I say, a sister. You've never felt that close to any of the other Belmonts, have you?" he pushed, taunting her, much like a bully might go looking for a fight on a playground.

Sara nodded. She opened her mouth to answer when Dracula suddenly gave an aggravated sigh.

"I can't see you anymore, Sara," he said.

Sara smiled. "Good. Then you won't hear me tell you how right you are."

#

Ria sat, sobbing harder than she had ever cried in her life—except, perhaps, when her Father had died— in the middle of the clock tower room's floor. She was still holding the Vampire Killer, just not as tightly, the handle now wet with her tears. She sniffled, trying to get herself under control. She was really being quite loud, her sobs echoing around the room.

"Adriana?"

Ria was on her feet and whirled, finding herself thankful that her body—seeing as she did not lash out with the whip or gasp or scream when she turned—had realized that the voice belonged to Isaac before her mind did. He stood right below one of the openings usually blocked by the hanging statues, his eyes wide in what Ria would almost call concern. She put her back to him, using her fingers, the heel of her hand, and the back of her hand to try and wipe away all the evidence that she had just been crying her eyes out. She looked back at him, putting the whip away and crossing her arms. She hoped that her face or her eyes weren't too red. But judging by the fact that he still had that same look on his face, she knew that she hoped in vain.

Isaac's eyes were roving her body, and Ria was feeling very uncomfortable, even though the looks crossing over his face were not inappropriate. Finally, Isaac strode forward, taking Ria gently by the shoulders—careful to avoid her injuries—and made her sit back down on the ground.

"These wounds haven't been treated, Adriana," he said, a slight tone of surprise in his voice. "Do you have the means to do so?"

Ria felt the tears coming again. She knew that she must look like she had been beaten half to death and to Hell and back, and that led her to think how useless she felt, crying while her mother was in grave danger. She opened her mouth to answer Isaac, but her voice caught in her throat. Instead, she removed her backpack purse from her back and gently shoved it into his hands, nodding.

He opened the pack and removed the small first aid kit. He opened it with a shake of his head and removed all the necessary items to clean and dress her wounds. Ria could feel the tears sliding, sneakily, out of her eyes and down her cheeks. She sniffled again, not wanting Isaac to have to see her with both bloodshot eyes and a snotty-nose.

"Hold still," Isaac said softly, applying the gelled antibiotic to Ria's smaller wounds.

"Okay," Ria whispered back.

The scrape on her knee and the cut from the bat's claw on her head were quickly dressed. After they were taken care of, Isaac paused and eyed Ria's bigger wounds—the un-bandaged cut on Ria's right arm and the gash on her leg. The forgemaster sighed.

"I wish my sister were here. She was always better at healing magics than I," he muttered, tapping his fingers absently on the plastic case of the first aid kit.

"You have—" Ria paused as his eyes met hers. She smiled apologetically before continuing, "I'm sorry, had a sister?"

"No need to worry about it being a sore subject, Adriana. In a strange way, Julia outlived me. I died way back when, remember?" he smiled, putting a hand over Ria's injured leg. "But yes. Her name was Julia. I did a spell to find out what had happened to her after I died, out of curiosity. She had a good life. Married, had three or four children. Died at a ripe old age and, all the while, was able to practice her witchcraft without fear, finally. I'm…happy she got to live her life."

Isaac had pressed his lips into a thin line after that last bit, and Ria looked away, sorry that the subject had come up no matter that he had told her not to worry about it. Isaac muttered a few words she didn't understand and removed his hand, the only cut left being the one in her jeans. She blinked, impressed.

"Don't sell yourself short, Isaac. I can't do anything like this," she said, gesturing to her leg.

He smiled a small smile. "Julia taught me this, actually. Again, she was always the better magician."

Isaac moved on to her arm and had it healed in a matter of moments. He sat back, sitting cross-legged on the floor beside her. Ria eyed him before finally sighing.

"Do you miss her?" she asked.

Isaac gave her a half-smile. "Sometimes. You remind me of her, slightly. Or perhaps I just think that she would have lived better in these times rather than our own."

"How do I remind you of her?"

He shrugged. "She was very independent, strong. Everything that I never was, never could be. She was a witch and fought all her life to simply practice her art, dodging witch hunt after witch hunt."

Ria mouthed an "oh" but said nothing further. She looked away from the forgemaster, biting her bottom lip lightly, trying to think of how to continue the conversation. She looked up and past Isaac, her eyes on the door. How long would it take Dracula and Sara to work out their problems?

She suddenly felt racked with guilt. She sighed, putting a hand over her eyes.

"Oh God," she muttered, inhaling deeply and removing the hand.

"What is it?" Isaac said sharply, ready to jump to his feet and his hand already reaching for his spear.

"Nothing," Ria answered and Isaac relaxed. "Look, I'm sorry you had to see me like that. I'm not really a crier, usually."

"It's quite alright," he replied, waving a hand dismissively. "That many wounds must have hurt. The pain was bound to catch up to you eventually."

Her eyes widened. He thought she was crying because her wounds hurt? She growled lightly and smacked him across the arm, causing him to cry out in shock.

"What was that for?" he demanded.

"I wasn't crying because of my wounds!" Ria hissed. "I was crying because…"

She paused, not quite sure how to form her next statement. Isaac rubbed the spot where she had hit him and arched a brow at her.

"Then what were you crying at?"

With a deep breath, Ria caught Isaac up on all that had happened since he had last visited her. He looked extremely interested in the bits about Sara and kept urging her to give him more details on her existence, which she couldn't really do, providing that she didn't know too much about it herself. Then again, she reflected as she finished up the story, maybe that was a good thing.

"So, I screamed at them to get out and work it out. That I couldn't deal with them right now," she finished, sighing.

"You seem to be doing that a lot lately," Isaac commented lightly.

Ria felt her face flush. "About that…Isaac, I've been thinking it over. I know why you kept it from me. You did it so that I would still have the extra help, I'm sure…and, although I'm still not happy that you did it, I'm not mad at you. And I'm sorry that I yelled at you to leave. I honestly didn't mean it."

He grinned, shrugging. "I figured you would…what's the phrase now?...get over it."

Ria smiled.

"Really? Well, I guess you were right," she said, pausing after a moment. She looked back at the door, expecting Sara and Dracula any moment, and continued when they did not emerge. "So, is my mother okay? She's safe, right?"

Isaac nodded. "Yes. She's very worried about you, as much as you are worried about her, I dare say. Walter grows ever more impatient. Time is becoming of the essence."

Ria groaned, closing her eyes. When she reopened them, Isaac had that almost concerned look on his face again.

"Let's change the subject," he said matter-of-factly.

She nodded, throwing her eyes about the room as if the new subject would just come to her, but instead found herself frequently bombarded with images of her mother either in intense pain or dead. She closed her eyes, briefly, and tried to block them out. Isaac stared at her intently, expectantly, and she was becoming uneasy with the attention. Her eyes found the door again, still waiting for the return of the vampire and the ghost. When neither appeared, she groaned. She hoped that Sara and Dracula weren't yelling too much at one another. Of course, Ria reflected, any yelling did to Dracula he deserved to receive in tenfold. After all, he had done so many terrible things to her, not to mention every other Belmont and random bystander in between.

With this thought, the new subject came to her. She turned her gaze on Isaac, who blinked with quiet surprise to find his intense stare suddenly returned.

"You're really loyal to him, aren't you?" she asked.

"Who? Surely you don't mean Walter," he sneered.

She gave a short, hollow laugh. "No. You know who I mean."

She wanted to avoid using Dracula's name, in case it incited Isaac's bond with Walter.

"Yes, of course I am. My Master has given me many gifts. He's given me the ability to heal as a vampire heals, as well as some of the senses of vampires, like smell."

Ria shook her head sadly, recalling the story of Isaac she had read within the Belmont journals. More specifically, she recalled the end of the tale, Isaac's demise. Her face downturned, she wrapped her arms about herself.

"How can you be so loyal? He isolated you from your family…your sister, didn't he? He used you, literally, in his resurrection. I don't understand your faith in him," she hissed, her voice growing harsher as she spoke.

Isaac raised a brow at her. Ria's face was flushed with the hatred she felt coursing through her veins for the vampire king, towards his deception, and every word she spoke about him was dripping with venom.

"I wanted power, Adriana. Julia and I had a hard childhood, due to our family's unusual ways, and we had to fight for everything we had. All my life, all I've ever wanted was the power to rise above my past. My sister was a natural at magics, powerful without much effort, giving her more authority over me even though she was younger. I served her, in a way, for many years when I was still a child myself, always at her heels, trying to learn as much as possible from her. It was not long before I discovered the blacker arts and gained some notoriety for myself among worshipers of evil. Once Lord Dracula had heard of me, he offered me a quicker way to what he said would be more power. I wanted to be in control, but I was still second to another devil forgemaster, named Hector, and all are second or less to Dracula himself. I have power, but I'm still not in control. Perhaps I never will be," he said, reclining back on the floor.

"You know something? I used to feel the same way," Ria said.

"Do tell."

And he sounded genuinely surprised.

"I felt powerless my whole life, never more than when my father was sick and dying. Powerless among my peers, my parents, everyone. I felt lost in the world. I wanted so much to be powerful, to be strong enough to handle it all, to be noticed. But you know what?"

"What?"

Ria laughed bitterly. "I have power now, and I don't want it so much anymore."

Isaac laughed, and even Ria found herself chuckling mirthlessly at herself.

"Perhaps that's the way it should be," he said thoughtfully after he had done away with his laughter.

Ria shrugged and said nothing. She looked again to the doors of the room, waiting for the others to return. Still, no arrivals. Isaac sighed deeply and stood, stretching.

"I should return before your guest does," he said.

Ria blinked and leapt to her feet. She grabbed him by the arm, lightly tugging on the sleeve of his black shirt. His face filled with much surprise.

"Don't go yet," she said.

He narrowed his eyes at her, questioning what had brought this reaction on. Ria let go and crossed her arms in front of herself once more.

"Isaac," she began, trailing off for a moment, trying to find her words. Isaac waited patiently, watching her face as if he could read her thoughts from her eyes. With a deep breath, she continued, "Isaac…you've only lied to me once. That's much less than most the other people I know. My mother lied to me, your master lied to me, and, well, Sara hasn't lied to me, but that's not my point."

"What is your point, Adriana?" Isaac asked, confusion all over his features.

"My point is…your master had an idea, concerning you and me, but he and Sara got into a fight before I could learn any more about it. So, I'm going to put the idea before you and ask you what pros and cons of it are."

He arched a brow. "Pros and cons?"

Ria let out a small aggravated sigh. "Positives and negatives of it."

Isaac mouthed an "oh" and gestured for her to carry on.

"He suggested you and I make a blood bond, but I don't know what good that would do…or what bad that would do, as the case may be. So…tell me all about it. I know I shouldn't trust you, but…right now, you're the only one that has lied to me, but has had a good reason for it."

"That doesn't make any sense," Isaac said.

"The blood bonding?"

"No, your logic."

Ria smacked him across the arm again. He sighed, rubbing the spot lightly.

"A blood bond between us might do more good than bad, truth be told. To counter Walter's in any way, you would have to be the master in the bond, like Walter was with our bond. Now, he's much older and more powerful than you, so if we were, say, in the same room with him and the both of you gave me an order…Walter's order would more than likely surpass yours. Other than that, I can think of nothing else. I can see no real negatives about the situation."

Ria nodded, taking it in. It made sense, she reasoned. No faults whatsoever.

"How do you do it?" she asked.

Isaac shrugged. "It's a blood bond, Adriana. How do you think it's done?"

Ria narrowed her eyes. She was in no mood to appreciate sarcasm. He grinned his serpentine grin again, and she couldn't help but return it as a sneer.

"We exchange blood, right? What else?" she snapped.

Isaac put a finger in the air and shook it, and Ria stared at him questioningly.

"Not exactly an exchange. In fact, since you would be the master of our bond, I would drink of your blood as you speak an incantation. It'll be different than the way Walter bonded me. He simply combined the resurrection spell with the bond, eliminating the actual incantation," Isaac said, pausing thoughtfully.

"Okay…" Ria drew out.

"Tell me, do you know Latin?"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Isaac, I'm barely trained to fight vampires. Do you really think that I do?"

"I was simply asking."

"It was a stupid question."

"No such thing."

"Really? What if I just suddenly asked you, while looking right at you, what color your hair was?"

Isaac opened his mouth to respond, but paused. He seemed deep in thought, trying his best to come up with a retort while Ria grinned triumphantly the whole while. Finally, he sighed in aggravation.

"We're off subject. For the incantation to work, it must be spoken in its original Latin. I could tell it to you, you could repeat it, and I would drink from you as you repeated it."

"Is it difficult?" she asked. "Because I tried to take Russian in school and failed. Epically."

Isaac blinked, a look on his face like he was trying to learn a new language himself. Finally, he shook his head.

"No, it's not difficult, nor is it long. Now, you would have to make a cut on yourself…it doesn't matter where. You're shorter than I am, so I, personally, ask that it is someplace…ahem…comfortable for me."

He was smirking again. Ria hit him again, hard. She growled a little when she replied, "I'll probably just use my forearm, stupid."

The smack she had given him—again, across the arm—had not wiped neither the smirk from his face…nor the innuendo from his voice.

"I was simply saying…"

"I know what you were saying, Isaac…"

He grinned. "Very well. That's all it should take. What are your feelings on this matter now?"

A good question. Ria had concentrated her last few moments around learning the hows, that she had forgotten to take into account the whys. She blinked a few times, drawing a mental blank.

"I don't know…what about you? Would you do it?" she asked.

"You really care if I care?"

There was that genuine surprise again. She nodded in earnest.

"Then yes, Adriana. I would blood bond with you…and probably find you a better master than Walter."

It wasn't much of a compliment…but it was still a compliment. Ria grinned, finding her face turning a tad pink. Isaac glanced away, seeming not to notice. Finally, Ria nodded and pulled the dagger on her belt free from its sheath.

"Let's do it," she said.

No sooner had the words left her mouth, Sara re-entered the room. She blinked, staring between the two of them. Finally, her eyes rested on her pupil.

"Do what, pray tell?" she asked.

Ria blinked, starting a little at her sudden reappearance.

"I'm going to blood bond with Isaac," she said.

In a very comical move, Isaac turned to look behind himself, only to peer down upon Ria like he had missed something. Ria raised a brow at him, confused for a moment, then laughed once.

"Sara's in the room," she explained.

"Really?" Isaac asked, turning as if he could see her.

"Yes, really," Sara said, moving past Isaac to stand firmly in front of Ria.

"Can you see her?" Ria asked him.

He shook his head. She shrugged.

"You're not blood bonding with him, Ria. You don't know what it'll do," Sara said.

"Yes I do, Sara. Isaac told me."

"And you believed him? He has lied to you before!"

Sara seemed to be getting upset again. Ria sighed.

"Oh, Sara, I just went through that with him…I really don't want to repeat all of it," she groaned. "I'm doing this because I trust that he's told me the truth about it."

"No."

The whip-bound woman seemed moments away from girlishly stamping her foot on the ground. Isaac, meanwhile, seemed fascinated by this exchange. He must have been trying to figure out Sara's side of the conversation. He was staring so intently at the spot where he thought she was, it was almost like he was trying to will himself the ability to hear her.

"Sara, you've trained me well, and I'm really sorry I yelled at you…But I've got to make some of these decisions on my own, don't I? And I'm choosing to do this. Please," Ria said, her voice calm and even.

Sara stared at her, searching her eyes. Then, with a small, sad smile, she nodded.

"You're right. Of course you are…just…be careful, Ria…"

With that, she stepped to the side, eyes on the dagger still clutched in Ria's hand. Ria smiled up at Isaac.

"I convinced her," she summed up.

He nodded. "Shall we begin?"

The first few minutes were spent teaching Ria the incantation, which Isaac assured her was only ten or so words long. To someone unable to speak the language, Ria felt like she was reciting the Declaration of Independence…only in Latin. Finally, after tripping over the words about twenty times, Isaac declared her ready. She nodded, keeping the incantation going around and around in her mind.

"Begin speaking the words, Adriana, as you make the cut," he said.

Her hand was shaking. She had forgotten one important factor to this spell. The cut. It was going to hurt. And she wasn't a fan of pain. But with a big gulp, she put the tip of the dagger to her mid-forearm and began reciting the incantation. She was midway through the spell, fighting against crying out or hissing in pain, when she completed the cut. She brought her arm up, close now to the end of the spell, as Isaac bent slightly at the waist, putting his lips to the thick, crimson line that had formed. As she felt him begin to lightly suck at it, she completed the spell.

And gasped. She felt Isaac's grip tighten around her arms, and felt her own, free hand squeeze his shoulder—where she had placed it to keep balance. The hand attached to the currently occupied arm was balled into a ghostly white fist. Her body began to shake, just as Isaac's began to do the same. Then, a familiar feeling shot through her…The jolt that had shook Isaac and Ria, both, when they had had their first confrontation shot through them again. Isaac was groaning against her arm while Ria was now openly crying out from the shock. Their bodies shuddered so violently that it was all they could do to remain on their feet.

"Ria! Oh, Ria, let go!" Sara yelled.

But Ria wasn't really holding on…and neither was Isaac, but the two simply could not part. Finally, both with a final gasp, they fell apart, crashing to floor gasping for air. Sara ran to Ria's side.

"Ria? Ria!" she cried.

Both Isaac and Ria were moving, breathing, but neither could find their voice to speak. Finally, they managed to sit up. Sara sighed, pressing a hand over her heart.

"You scared me! I thought you were…" but the ghost let the sentence hang.

Ria locked eyes with Isaac.

"You didn't mention that it would feel like that!" she hissed.

He shook his head. "That wasn't the blood bond, Ria. I have no idea what that was."

She blinked. Then, with a sigh, she lay back, closing her eyes.

"Ria!" Sara yelled again.

"Ssh," Ria said. "I'm just gonna rest my eyes for a minute."