Castlevania: Untested (15/27)

Aug 23, 2012 23:50


Title: Untested
By: PatriciaTepes (AKA Patricia de Lioncourt @ fanfiction.net; PatriciaLouise @ TTH)
Chapter Title: Lost and Found
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
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: Kudos to twisted_slinky for this chapter title! Also, a tiny warning, for a PG-13 rating, you are allowed one use of the F-word. Let it be noted…I'm using my one time in this chapter. Enjoy!





Chapter 14: Lost and Found

It never ceased to amaze her, in the whole fifteen years she had been a mother, how much of a mess Ria could make in just a few moments. Sophy sighed and put the last dish away in the cabinet. She swept a stray lock of her blonde hair off her shoulder, back with the rest of her low ponytail. Reaching down into the mucky, sudsy sink, she pulled the plug, the water swirling away with a horrible sucking noise that never failed to make her a little sick. She sighed.

"Ria, you can take your shower now!" she called over her shoulder. "I'm done with the dishes!"

"'Kay, Mom!" she heard her daughter cry back.

A few moments later, Sophy heard the unmistakably noises of movement upstairs and then the sound of running water. She peeled the yellow rubber gloves off her hands and tossed them behind the faucet. Now that Ria was safely in the shower, she could finally tackle the one room she had yet to properly clean…Ria's.

Dust rag, Pine Sol, and laundry basket in hand, Sophy mounted the staircase slowly, as to not to arouse Ria's suspicions. Like any other fifteen year old, Ria loathed the thought of her mother in her room, messing with her things. But if she wasn't going to keep it clean, then somebody had to. Normally, Sophy wouldn't care if Ria knew that she was in her room or not. But since Jared's death, things had been rough between them. She wasn't in the mood to have another useless argument with her only child. Successfully without detection, Sophy made it into Ria's room and instantly began her work.

She had cleaned all the furniture with the Pine Sol-Ria only had a few pieces that really needed it-and had gathered all her dirty clothes into the basket within minutes. She kept her ear open for the shower, making sure that Ria would not take her by surprise. But Sophy knew that Ria loved long showers, so she wasn't too worried about it. In another few minutes, she had every single item picked up and put away.

Sophy had the basket, filled with the rag and Pine Sol lying on top, in hand and was about to exit the room when she saw Ria's laptop case laying on its side, laptop inside. She rolled her eyes, remembering a shouting fest she had recently had with Ria over the fact that she had unplugged the laptop to plug in the vacuum. Ria had made such a big deal over that fact that the stupid computer needed to charge, and here she had it just laying about! Sighing, she set down the basket and lifted the case onto the bed. Carefully, knowing that if she harmed the precious piece of electronics that she would never hear the end of it, Sophy pulled out the laptop. She had her hand on a corded object that was lying on top, and Sophy just assumed that it was the power cord she needed. So it was a great shock to her what came out with the computer instead.

Worn from hundreds and hundreds of years of usage against God-knows-what, Sophy instantly recognized the object that had caused her to ostracize herself from her family. The whip. Her breath caught in her throat, like she was holding a huge spider in her hand instead of a lifeless whip. She dropped it onto the well-made bed where it landed with barely a sound.

Where had Ria gotten this? Sophy hadn't remembered seeing it anywhere inside the house when she had come early to inspect it…to clean it up for her family. She was having trouble thinking clearly. She could still see her mother and father, bent over her younger brother, offering the whip. She remembered the damnable object flying across the room. Rejecting her brother…wanting her…wanting her to ruin her own life for it.

Sophy shook from head to toe. This whip had ruined her life…her family. What was it doing to her daughter now? And why, why did Ria even have it?

She considered for a moment yelling, screaming actually, for her daughter, the way she often did when Ria was in trouble. But, she thought after a second's hesitation, maybe Ria didn't know what this whip…The Vampire Killer…meant?

She heard the shower cut off. In perhaps the quickest movements of her life, Sophy shoved the whip and laptop back inside its case. She all but dropped the case back in the spot it had been in, grabbed up the laundry basket, and dashed from the room.

##

Ria dripped her way into her room, eyeing the staircase strangely before shutting the bedroom door. She would have sworn that she had heard running on the stairs, but she had seen no one when she emerged from the bathroom moments later. Glancing at the clock, she noted that it was almost noon…thirty minutes to go. She flung the fluffy green towel from her body, dried herself-pulling her hair back in a sloppy bun-and pulled on a pair of jeans, a shirt, and her shoes…allowing for underthings, of course. She was dressed and had her laptop case on her shoulder, whip inside, in five minutes…a new record.

"Make-up!" she squeaked, setting the case back on the bed moments before heading out.

Sara suddenly appeared behind her. She always made herself scarce when Ria was doing something personal like showering or getting dressed. Now, she had her arms crossed and her lips were downturned.

"You're not going on a date, Ria. And you're almost late as it is! We don't live that close to the town! We've got to go!" she said as Ria smeared some two-in-one base on her face and neck.

"Just a second more…done!" she said, applying lipstick-a neutral, peach tone.

Sara shook her head. "I just can't fathom you sometimes…do you honestly care what Isaac thinks of your appearance?"

Ria grabbed up her laptop case once more. "No, but sometimes you need to show that you're put together and ready to go. That's all I'm doing…I'm showing that I've got it together.

"Oh, yes," Sara said sarcastically, "I'm sure Isaac will identify you immediately as the best choice for defeating Walter because you so artfully chose the proper lip-color for your outfit today!"

Ria stuck her tongue out at the specter-woman right as her cell phone toned, informing her that she had a text message. She pulled the flip phone out of one of the pockets of the laptop case and opened it.

"Who could possibly be texting me?" she muttered as she accessed the message.

It was Isaac, announcing that they should meet at the local café. Ria groaned, shoving the phone back inside the case.

"Great…just great. Hundreds of hundreds of years old, and he can text message! You know, Sara, I think this frightens me more than Walter, a little bit," she said, opening the door to her room and beginning to descend the stairs.

"Me too, Ria. Me too," Sara replied.

Ria fought laughing out loud as she hit the first floor, making her way to the manor's door. She was stopped before she could make it all the way out.

"Ria," Sophy said, quite suddenly.

Ria turned and blinked at her mother. It sounded like she was mad at her, but to Ria's recollection, she had done nothing wrong.

"Yeah?"

"Ria, wh-…where are you going?" Sophy said, sighing like she was disappointed in herself.

"Oh. The café. I should be back before dark…" she said. Then, thinking of her next meeting with Alucard, she added, "Oh! But…they have this, uh, band playing later tonight…I thought I might go back to see that."

"Why can't you just wait and go to the café when the band plays?" Sophy prodded.

Something was off…but Ria couldn't put her finger on it. She stared at her mother, as if she could read it in her eyes. Finding nothing, she finally put a playful smile on her face.

"Oh, well, now's for coffee, Mom…Tonight's for music. See you!"

She was out the door before Sophy had had a chance to stop her again. Once on the road heading into town, Sara turned to her.

"That was strange, Ria. Are you sure that everything is all right with your mother?" she asked.

Ria's eyes were narrowed. "I don't know. I'll agree that that was weird beyond compare…but I can't think of any reason why Mom would be acting like that. I'll worry about it when I get back tonight."

Sara nodded, and the two fell silent as they entered into the town's limits. Isaac was seated in the outdoor portion of the café, under its large, blue awning. Ria sat down across from him, Sara invisibly siding into the unused third chair. He was wearing his typical black outfit, only with the shirt replaced and the addition of a pair of dark sunglasses. Ria mentally noted to never wear the sunglass within her purse at home-the very same design as the pair Isaac wore-ever again.

"So why exactly am I here?" she asked after both she and Isaac each ordered an Ice Mint Mocha Frappe.

"Well, relationships take work, Adriana," he said, grinning with emphasis he put on her whole name.

"We're in an alliance, not a relationship," she said, crossing her arms.

"Tomato, tomahto," he said, waving his hand.

"No, no. I'm saying tomato, and you damn well better be saying tomato too!"

He laughed. Shaking his head, he sighed.

"Well, we should get down to business, shouldn't we?"

Ria nodded, biting the inside of lip to keep from growling.

"Walter has been working with Orlox towards the end of securing his hold on the Crimson Stone."

"Uh, yeah…you told me as much last night."

Isaac groaned as the waitress set their drinks down in front of them. When the girl was gone, he huffed once more for good measure.

"What I mean is that they are taking more active steps towards doing so. Walter has ordered me to obtain a sample of Dracula's blood, should I ever find him, before I kill him. They are preparing the spell tonight, so that they can perform it as soon as possible."

Ria leaned forward, her stomach twisting horribly as she recalled what he had told her the previous night.

"But…didn't you say that Mom and I could also be used for this spell?" she asked.

"I did."

Her stomach did an odd flop, twist move. She noticed that breathing was suddenly becoming harder. Her hand gripped the wrought iron of the table, trying to steady herself. Isaac now leaned forward, a mixed look of genuine concern and general mockery on his face.

"What's the matter, Adriana? Worried that the big, bad monster will come for you soon?" he said.

He had a look of disgust on his face when she looked back up at him. Sara was glaring at him now, practically seething. Was he implying that she couldn't cut it as a vampire hunter?

She kicked him underneath the table. Hard, causing him to jump. He bent and rubbed his shin, glaring at her.

"I don't give a damn what happens to me…I'm worried about my Mom. I want to keep her out of this!" she hissed.

He gritted his teeth at her. "My…apologies. I didn't mean…"

"I know exactly what you meant! Now, you want me and my abilities to restore your precious Dracula to his throne…if that's the case, then you better start playing nice with me."

Now, he smiled at her. "Very well. I won't imply anything such as that again."

"Fine," she snapped. "Now, what can I do about this? He has to be stopped…but…"

"You're not ready. All I can offer is that I continue putting as little effort as possible into my search for Lord Dracula. But Walter won't continue with his current…patience for long. The longer he waits, the more time he's giving Dracula to plan a counterattack. That's what he thinks, and he's probably not wrong. You have to hurry and prepare, Adriana…if you're not ready when the time comes…then there's no hope. And I sincerely mean that."

Ria sat with her eyes wide at this. Her mouth moved like a fish who was out of water might. Finally, she nodded, standing. She reached into her pocket and placed the proper of money on the table for her coffee, grabbing up the half-drunk cup.

"I'll get the tip," he said. "You go and get ready. The fight's coming."

She nodded as she began to walk away, vaguely aware that Sara was following her. She had not gone far when he suddenly reached out, catching her arm.

"What?" she said, the word snapping out of her mouth in shock.

"I…have a question. Something I've wanted to ask you," he said, quickly letting go of her.

"Okay."

"When we first fought…the…spark between us. Do you know what that was? I scoured spellbook after spellbook and found no explanation. What was it, Adriana?"

He looked quite harried over the subject. Ria, for her part, had moved it to the back of her thoughts, unable to completely rid herself of it. She shook her head.

"Honestly? I have no clue. I thought you might."

He sighed, looking away. She stood there for a moment, staring at him. Finally, after neither had spoken, she muttered, "I'm sorry."

She had no idea what she was apologizing for. Isaac turned, his own eyes wide now. Ria sighed and shook her head, turning and walking away. The walk back to Belmont Manor was was quiet. Ria knew that Sara probably wanted to ask what that last bit had been about…but knew better than to try the subject. And Ria appreciated this more than she could ever explain.

She spent hours after arriving back at home up in her room, listening to music, looking over some of the things about the school she would be attending in the coming fall that Sophy had left for her. Ria smirked, thinking that if she found it cold now, she did not want to know how cold it was going to be later in the year. Finally, the sun set, and Ria loaded herself back up to go meet with Alucard.

This time, Sophy was blocking the front door of the manor. Ria eyed her mother, noticing that Sara was giving the woman a similar look. She stopped a foot or so from her mother's…fuming form.

"What is it, Mom?" Ria asked a little warily.

"This is your last chance, Adriana. Tell me where you're going, really. No lies," she said.

Ria blinked several times. Where had this come from? Finally, she placed an innocent smile on her face.

"The café again, Mom. I told you. The band, remember?" she said, laughing a bit.

"Oh? Really?" Sophy said, stepping forward.

With a cry of protest from Ria, Sophy snatched her laptop case from her.

"What are you doing?" Ria yelled.

Sophy's hand dove inside the case and withdrew the whip. Sara gasped, pressing her pale, translucent hands to her lips. Ria could only stare.

"Why would you need this-" she shook the whip at her daughter, "when going to see a band, Adriana?"

"Mom…I can explain…" Ria began, putting up her hands in a defensive gesture.

"You don't have to! Where did you even get this thing? I thought my wretched parents had given it away!"

Her mother looked like a madwoman, having set the laptop case aside and now shaking the Vampire Killer furiously at her daughter. Ria shook her head, unable to come up with a suitable reply.

"Please," Sophy said, her tone suddenly one of pleading, "please, please, Ria…please tell me you aren't doing this…that you aren't…hunting!"

Now Ria's eyes flared. She could feel the anger coursing in her veins as she stepped forward and snatched the whip from her mother's hands.

"You knew? You knew about all of this? Dracula…our family…us! You…How could you keep this from me? My whole life…I've felt like a freak, and now I know that this weird knowledge of feeling different actually has a purpose, and you fucking knew!"

"Ria," Sophy sighed, "language!"

"I don't give a damn about my language, Mom! You've kept this from me? Why?"

"Because it would have…is ruining your life!" Sophy suddenly screeched at her. "My parents tried to give me that stupid thing, but I didn't want it. I wanted to be normal, Ria. This isn't normal!"

"What's so wrong about this? You know, helping people? Destroying ultimate evils? Huh? What's so wrong with it?"

"Because it could cost you your life!" Sophy threw her arms into the air, seeming to grasp for more ways for her daughter to understand what she meant. "I thought that my mother and father had given this to him…This isn't your job, Ria. This is my brother and his children's job, not ours."

Ria's eyes widened.

"Brother? When were you going to mention that I had an uncle, huh? Any other family secrets while we're at it?"

Sophy and Ria both were breathing heavily now. And Sara looked downright terrified. Finally, Sophy looked at Ria, tears welling up.

"Please…don't go. Don't go and throw away your life tonight, Ria."

Ria shoved past her mother, pausing at the door.

"What life, Mom? My real one, or the one you've made me live?"

And she took off down the pathway from her house, ignoring Sophy as she called her name over and over again.

##

Ria arrived outside Alucard's suite a little while later, still seething. She raised a fist and pounded on the polished white door hard, several times.

"Calm down, Ria. He's going to think that something has happened," Sara pleaded softly with her.

But anger was clouding her vision. And when the door opened, Ria shoved her way inside.

"Won't you please come in?" Alucard murmured as he shut the door behind her. He turned, eyeing Ria as she paced back and forth within the same few steps of carpet.

"Is something wrong? Has something happened?" he asked, sitting down a little ways in front of her.

Sara opened her mouth, probably about to mutter an "I told you so," but then thought better of it.

"Oh…oh, nothing. Everything, really, but nothing you'll care about! Only that my mother has been lying to me my whole damn life! Did you know-" she stopped her pacing and now faced Alucard, a finger held up in the air, "that she knew all about our family history and didn't tell me? No, of course you didn't know! And neither did I! And she...argh!"

Alucard sat back in the chair, seemingly content to watch Ria resume her pacing back and forth, coming nearer and farther to him. Finally, it seemed that something clicked inside the teen's head, and she stopped, sighing and pressing a hand to her forehead.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I just…need a minute…"

"That's quite all right…please…sit," Alucard said, gesturing to the seat nearest him.

She slumped into it. After a few moments of staring, rather intently, at the carpet, she looked up.

"I met with Isaac," she said.

She suddenly felt very tired. Anger took a lot of energy out of a person. She leaned back against the chair, noting how heavy her limbs now felt, and fought against letting her eyes close.

"Ah, and how did that go? Did we learn anything useful?"

Ria nodded. "Yeah. Walter's preparing a spell to secure his hold on the Crimson Stone. He'll need either Dracula's blood or…"

And Ria paused. Or mine or Mom's, she finished mentally.

"Or?" Alucard prodded, looking keenly interested.

"A Belmont's," Ria said, standing. "I've got to go home…I'll come back tomorrow night!"

She didn't wait for an answer, dashing out of the room. She shouldn't have left her Mom like that, she thought as she raced down the road towards her home. She should have told her what was going on…let her know that she should protect herself. But she had been so angry...

She charged up the pathway to her house, pausing right at the front doorstep. The doors were wide open, and Ria could already see the destruction inside.

"Mom!" she yelled, running into the house.

It was a mess. Furniture was overturned, vases were smashed…and Sophy was nowhere to be found.

"Moooommmmm!" she screamed into the house, only her own echo answering her.

Sara stood beside her, her eyes darting back and forth over the destruction, muttering over and over, "Oh, no. Oh, no. Oh, no."

Ria paused, distraught, in the middle of the manor. Her mother was gone, taken. And there was only one person...one monster...that could have done so. Walter had taken her, to Castlevania.

story: untested, fandom: castlevania

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