[Courtesy of the beach party, he's home late. He didn't attend- not deliberately, in any case; the task of ushering some of the elder teenagers that snuck out simply fell to him, and he ended up spending a considerable length of time walking back and fort through the sand, ensuring he hadn't missed anyone. But it's late, he's home, and he can still hear the fireworks popping as he steps up to their apartment door and uses his card key.
The first thing he hears is whimpering. Closing the door behind himself, he hurries to locate the source, following it into Alucard's bedroom and slapping on the light.]
[ alucard slept most of the day, really. no harm done. but once the party started--no, the fireworks--he woke up, courtesy of baskerville panicking and barking and running in circles. soothing him hadn't exactly worked, and it's not like he can soundproof the entire apartment, so he does the next best thing.
a companion might help, is what he thinks, and when anderson opens his bedroom door alucard is, well, not in a human form, that's for sure. instead there's a very large black hellhound curled up on the bed, red eyes blinking to adjust to the light, and baskerville is burrowed against him, still whimpering with each pop of sound but at least not barking or pacing. ]
He's afraid of fireworks.
[ it's a low rumble, and the dog's mouth doesn't move--the voice is just there, existing, and six red eyes focus on anderson, unblinking now that he's settled on him. ]
[Anderson has to pause to take in the sight of Baskerville burrowed into a Hellhound. It so scarcely comes out that sometimes he forgets Alucard has that form.]
You don't seem to be doing a bad job.
[Though Baskerville is still whimpering, still trembling, and it's a most pitiful sight. A fresh set of whimpers erupt from him when a particularly loud firework rumbles through the air.
He shuts the bedroom door, flicks the light back off, and approaches the bed, seating himself on the edge so he can scratch at the base of Baskerville's tail. The touch seems to soothe him and gradually the shaking subsides.]
There you are. He's calm now. I'm going to head to bed.
[He slowly draws his hand back and the shaking resumes. Evidently some scratches aren't going to cut it.]
[ with a low sigh. he shifts a bit when anderson sits on the bed, making room for him. baskerville finally silencing is heartening, at least, and the dog's tail even wags a tiny bit, because of course he's happy to see him.
it's when he tries to leave and all that baskerville--well, yeah, he starts shaking again, but he's also pawing toward anderson and trying to bring his hand back, snuffling against his arm and whining quietly. there's another crack and the whining gets a little louder, and he tries to--hide, between the both of them, tail tucked between his legs. yeah, not enough. ]
Yeah, it's been about like this. At first I thought they couldn't possibly go on this long, but what do I know?
[Well, that sure is the most heart rending display he's ever seen.]
They aren't your standard fireworks. With the colours and shapes I've seen, I expect it's a lengthy lineup.
[There's only a moment of contemplation before Anderson decides to shrug off his cassock, toe off his boots, and lower himself into bed. Baskerville seems to appreciate the proximity, but he continues to whimper and paw and bump his nose into Anderson's chest until Anderson curls closer, cocooning himself around the dog and around Alucard, one of his legs draped over Alucard's hind.
Once again, Baskerville's distress eases. Anderson sighs.]
Right. I suppose I'm stuck here until those fireworks are done.
[Plucking his glasses off his face, he sets them on the bedside table and carefully directs Alucard's head to his shoulder, since he doesn't fancy having dog breath in his face.]
[ sure, that makes him sound like a grumpy old man, but--whatever. he is a grumpy old man. also his dog is sad. he watches anderson move in the low light, and there's a sense of pleasure to it when he realizes that the other man is just going to join them--he'd smile, if he could, but instead huffs a pleased sound when he curls close, shifting to settle against him.
it's odd--he's warmer like this, a little, perhaps because of the fur. he lets himself be moved, licking his chops once before settling a heavy jaw on anderson's shoulder with a huff of sound. it's stupidly domestic, in its own bizarre way, and baskerville finally calming down enough to settle quietly with them, sort of tucked in between their bodies, is a plus. ]
I'm sure there are worse places to be.
[ all six eyes are closed, and he sounds too content, really. he really is getting used to the whole cuddling thing, even if it's a little silly like this. ]
[This arrangement seems to please Alucard, which makes Anderson snort. Count Dracula, King of Vampires: a cuddler. He wedges an arm against Alucard's neck, over his paws, making himself comfortable. The fur being moderately warmer than Alucard's skin helps.]
I don't mind, really. Not as though I haven't done this before, though generally it's during thunderstorms, and with children of the less furry variety.
[In her youth, Yumiko hadn't been a fan of loud sounds. Granted, Yumiko had been quite easy to frighten in general, while Yumie wasn't at the helm. Often she'd crawled into Anderson's bed, cuddled up with him when things were too loud, too overwhelming, and this fear had waned as she'd gotten older, but never enough for her to have guns as a regular in her repertoire.
He smiles wistfully and strokes his fingers through Alucard's fur, his other hand doing the same to Baskerville's head.]
Yumiko used to come crawling into my bed when there were loud noises about. You wouldn't think so, but she was quite the skittish child.
[ at some point, during this settling in, his tail thumps against the mattress. once, twice, three times. yeah, okay, he likes cuddling, so sue him. it's comfortable. ]
You make a good barrier against the fear, I assume.
[ him big, and also protective. of course the children would come to him. he listens to anderson speak quietly, huffing a pleasant sound because he's being pet, half burrowing into his neck a little more just for more contact. he's getting spoiled, is what he is.
anderson bringing up yumiko is bittersweet, since he knows what happens, but he still has no intention of telling anderson that anything happened to her. he never has to know: he died before it happened, so even if he goes home... he huffs a sigh this time, but it's not put out in any way. ]
It's difficult for me to see her as skittish, but I can understand it. A homebody when she's not in the middle of battle, it makes sense.
[ not that he'd really seen her at all outside of battle, but from the way anderson describes her, that's how it seems to be.
it's not like alucard to care about people that aren't his obsessions, but really, he wishes that had all gone down differently. ]
[Hard to be frightened when you're being held by a bulky, six foot six man who can effortlessly lift entire beds (something the orphans regularly witnessed, due to how prone they were to losing things under them).
He's made something of a life here, but he still misses Rome, his orphanage, his children. He was such a regular fixture in so many of their lives that he has to wonder how they manage without him. He hadn't considered how it would impact them, when forfeiting his life. A desire to escape, to serve God with his final breaths had suffused everything.
He hand drifts to Alucard's ear, scratching behind it.]
She was something of the sort, yes. While Heinkel, well... sometimes I would find Heinkel in Yumiko's bed, but I suspect that was for Yumiko's benefit rather than the other way around. They were always inseparable.
[He's glad they have each other, he thinks. Ignorance is bliss.
His smile twitches and widens before he continues.]
And speaking of children, a certain little girl is very eager to meet Baskerville. She has a dentist appointment coming up, so I'm considering dropping into the apartment after and letting her take Baskerville for a walk on the beach. You're welcome to accompany us, if you aren't busy next Tuesday.
[Just in case Alucard wanted more domesticity in his life.]
[ look, even alucard can see the appeal. and clearly baskerville is happy with their combined powers, rubbing his head against anderson's hand like there's nothing better in the world.
meanwhile alucard tilts into the ear scratches, eyes lidded and, hilariously, tongue lolling slightly. yeah, okay, he does have some dog mannerisms. ]
I could definitely see that.
[ heinkel's devotion to yumiko was something else, wasn't it? there's really no succinct way to put it. endless, maybe. so it makes sense.
still, he's more than happy for the change in subject, and his ears perk up somewhat as anderson speaks about going out with susan. he knows he shouldn't get attached, but here he is, and he huffs a sound and settles in more against anderson. ]
I have to work in the evening, but the day is free. What time?
[Anderson has to laugh at the lolling of Alucard's tongue. Those ears scratches are good, clearly. He moves to the opposite ear, leaning his cheek into Alucard's fur as Alucard slumps into him.]
Her appointment is at eleven, and I expect that won't take long. We'll probably arrive around eleven forty or so.
[For a six-eyed dog, Alucard is oddly cute. It's hard to resist the urge to cuddle and pet him. In fact, Anderson's not resisting the urge at all, since Alucard doesn't seem to mind either the pets or cuddles.
He makes a thoughtful sound.]
As an aside, I've noticed the children don't like the water, like the rest of the natives here, but they're less wary than the adults. Perhaps the natives fear of it is learned.
[ big tail thumps..... sorry anderson even if you wanted to you wouldn't escape, because alucard is flopping all over you because of all this petting. he has such a sleepy air about him now, lazy and half-awake, though at least it's clear he's still paying attention. ]
Mm. Plenty of time, then.
[ it's interesting, what he says about the water. he's been curious about it, though not enough to try going into it, and he hums thoughtfully, huffing a sound and pushing his head against anderson's hand. baskerville is doing the same, meanwhile. ]
It's odd. I know people that've gone into it with no problems, and I can't sense anything wrong with it, so what are the natives so afraid of? It's obviously not water in and of itself, but... the ocean, specifically, and I doubt they're worried about sharks.
[That heavy head is pinning him to the mattress, and he's fine with it. It's comfortable, lying like this.
To Alucard's comments regarding the beach, he makes another thoughtful sound. He's stepped into the water himself. As far as he can tell, there's nothing immediately amiss about it.]
There might be repercussions for straying too close to the water? Or if they take a dip, perhaps a Wicked Witch of the West occurs?
[Forgive his wording; some of the children in Rome liked that movie.]
One of these days, we ought to throw a LIEs employee in there, see what happens.
[ at least he's not trying to lick anderson's hands like baskerville does. he'll save that for being saucy in a human form, thanks. for now, just snuggling.
he'd smile, if he could, at the reference. he's seen the movie, once, when integra was small, so at least he gets it. ]
Imagine, if that were why.
[ he barks (hah) a laugh at the idea, tongue running along sharp teeth lazily as he settles back in. he likes the sound of it, and his tail is still going, and he knows it's silly, but-- ]
Dibs on first throw. Unless you want to do it together. If they don't die, I can make them think they just fell in on accident. It's a perfect crime.
[He could do that dumb, dog smile that looks vaguely guilty, but in their current position, Anderson wouldn't be able to appreciate it anyway.]
Oh? You'll make them think they accidentally fell across thirty or so feet of sand, through the shallows, and into the deep of the water? Truly, it's an infallible plan.
[He's teasing, obviously in a good mood.
He lets his hand stroke idly down Alucard's back while he speaks again.]
Making them think they fell in one of those ponds in the Up might work.
As long as they believe it, it doesn't matter how plausible it is. In fact, the more implausible, the more likely they are to get headaches trying to process it into something that makes sense, so let me be petty.
[ he's teasing too, but it's true. those people could use a good migraine as punishment. his back does a little arch as anderson pets him but then he's flopping again, truly content. ]
Though, if you want to go for ease, I suppose that works. Though, honestly, hopefully they just drown.
I don't doubt it. They've ensured this place is well isolated.
[Apparently there is a means of getting to a place called Veracity, but that location hasn't been made available to them yet, assuming it ever will be.
He gives a wry smile at Alucard's comment.]
I wouldn't be opposed. I want to say we're fighting Eris, in spirit, but as we have actual figures from mythology here, it doesn't quite work. We assigned Millennium Mars, if you're curious.
[The 9th Crusade didn't quite work out, but hey... it was a good effort.]
And you know perfectly well we can't, as much as I might like to.
It's bigger than my normal prisons, but it's a prison nonetheless.
[ veracity is on his mind, once in a while, but he's not particularly inclined to want to go there, after what happened in the fort. still, it exists, and so too must other cities... right? it's a thought for other times.
he snorts. of course he wouldn't be opposed. ]
Mm. Mars was fitting. The appearance of mythological figures here does make it more difficult to put a name to it, though. Maybe we'll come up with something as time goes on. Something that won't become a problem when that figure happens to appear a week later.
[ this though, earns him a huffy, sulky noise. he really wants to kill that guy. ]
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The first thing he hears is whimpering. Closing the door behind himself, he hurries to locate the source, following it into Alucard's bedroom and slapping on the light.]
What's going on here?
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a companion might help, is what he thinks, and when anderson opens his bedroom door alucard is, well, not in a human form, that's for sure. instead there's a very large black hellhound curled up on the bed, red eyes blinking to adjust to the light, and baskerville is burrowed against him, still whimpering with each pop of sound but at least not barking or pacing. ]
He's afraid of fireworks.
[ it's a low rumble, and the dog's mouth doesn't move--the voice is just there, existing, and six red eyes focus on anderson, unblinking now that he's settled on him. ]
Nothing is working.
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You don't seem to be doing a bad job.
[Though Baskerville is still whimpering, still trembling, and it's a most pitiful sight. A fresh set of whimpers erupt from him when a particularly loud firework rumbles through the air.
He shuts the bedroom door, flicks the light back off, and approaches the bed, seating himself on the edge so he can scratch at the base of Baskerville's tail. The touch seems to soothe him and gradually the shaking subsides.]
There you are. He's calm now. I'm going to head to bed.
[He slowly draws his hand back and the shaking resumes. Evidently some scratches aren't going to cut it.]
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[ with a low sigh. he shifts a bit when anderson sits on the bed, making room for him. baskerville finally silencing is heartening, at least, and the dog's tail even wags a tiny bit, because of course he's happy to see him.
it's when he tries to leave and all that baskerville--well, yeah, he starts shaking again, but he's also pawing toward anderson and trying to bring his hand back, snuffling against his arm and whining quietly. there's another crack and the whining gets a little louder, and he tries to--hide, between the both of them, tail tucked between his legs. yeah, not enough. ]
Yeah, it's been about like this. At first I thought they couldn't possibly go on this long, but what do I know?
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They aren't your standard fireworks. With the colours and shapes I've seen, I expect it's a lengthy lineup.
[There's only a moment of contemplation before Anderson decides to shrug off his cassock, toe off his boots, and lower himself into bed. Baskerville seems to appreciate the proximity, but he continues to whimper and paw and bump his nose into Anderson's chest until Anderson curls closer, cocooning himself around the dog and around Alucard, one of his legs draped over Alucard's hind.
Once again, Baskerville's distress eases. Anderson sighs.]
Right. I suppose I'm stuck here until those fireworks are done.
[Plucking his glasses off his face, he sets them on the bedside table and carefully directs Alucard's head to his shoulder, since he doesn't fancy having dog breath in his face.]
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[ sure, that makes him sound like a grumpy old man, but--whatever. he is a grumpy old man. also his dog is sad. he watches anderson move in the low light, and there's a sense of pleasure to it when he realizes that the other man is just going to join them--he'd smile, if he could, but instead huffs a pleased sound when he curls close, shifting to settle against him.
it's odd--he's warmer like this, a little, perhaps because of the fur. he lets himself be moved, licking his chops once before settling a heavy jaw on anderson's shoulder with a huff of sound. it's stupidly domestic, in its own bizarre way, and baskerville finally calming down enough to settle quietly with them, sort of tucked in between their bodies, is a plus. ]
I'm sure there are worse places to be.
[ all six eyes are closed, and he sounds too content, really. he really is getting used to the whole cuddling thing, even if it's a little silly like this. ]
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I don't mind, really. Not as though I haven't done this before, though generally it's during thunderstorms, and with children of the less furry variety.
[In her youth, Yumiko hadn't been a fan of loud sounds. Granted, Yumiko had been quite easy to frighten in general, while Yumie wasn't at the helm. Often she'd crawled into Anderson's bed, cuddled up with him when things were too loud, too overwhelming, and this fear had waned as she'd gotten older, but never enough for her to have guns as a regular in her repertoire.
He smiles wistfully and strokes his fingers through Alucard's fur, his other hand doing the same to Baskerville's head.]
Yumiko used to come crawling into my bed when there were loud noises about. You wouldn't think so, but she was quite the skittish child.
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You make a good barrier against the fear, I assume.
[ him big, and also protective. of course the children would come to him. he listens to anderson speak quietly, huffing a pleasant sound because he's being pet, half burrowing into his neck a little more just for more contact. he's getting spoiled, is what he is.
anderson bringing up yumiko is bittersweet, since he knows what happens, but he still has no intention of telling anderson that anything happened to her. he never has to know: he died before it happened, so even if he goes home... he huffs a sigh this time, but it's not put out in any way. ]
It's difficult for me to see her as skittish, but I can understand it. A homebody when she's not in the middle of battle, it makes sense.
[ not that he'd really seen her at all outside of battle, but from the way anderson describes her, that's how it seems to be.
it's not like alucard to care about people that aren't his obsessions, but really, he wishes that had all gone down differently. ]
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He's made something of a life here, but he still misses Rome, his orphanage, his children. He was such a regular fixture in so many of their lives that he has to wonder how they manage without him. He hadn't considered how it would impact them, when forfeiting his life. A desire to escape, to serve God with his final breaths had suffused everything.
He hand drifts to Alucard's ear, scratching behind it.]
She was something of the sort, yes. While Heinkel, well... sometimes I would find Heinkel in Yumiko's bed, but I suspect that was for Yumiko's benefit rather than the other way around. They were always inseparable.
[He's glad they have each other, he thinks. Ignorance is bliss.
His smile twitches and widens before he continues.]
And speaking of children, a certain little girl is very eager to meet Baskerville. She has a dentist appointment coming up, so I'm considering dropping into the apartment after and letting her take Baskerville for a walk on the beach. You're welcome to accompany us, if you aren't busy next Tuesday.
[Just in case Alucard wanted more domesticity in his life.]
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meanwhile alucard tilts into the ear scratches, eyes lidded and, hilariously, tongue lolling slightly. yeah, okay, he does have some dog mannerisms. ]
I could definitely see that.
[ heinkel's devotion to yumiko was something else, wasn't it? there's really no succinct way to put it. endless, maybe. so it makes sense.
still, he's more than happy for the change in subject, and his ears perk up somewhat as anderson speaks about going out with susan. he knows he shouldn't get attached, but here he is, and he huffs a sound and settles in more against anderson. ]
I have to work in the evening, but the day is free. What time?
[ play it cool, play it cool. ]
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Her appointment is at eleven, and I expect that won't take long. We'll probably arrive around eleven forty or so.
[For a six-eyed dog, Alucard is oddly cute. It's hard to resist the urge to cuddle and pet him. In fact, Anderson's not resisting the urge at all, since Alucard doesn't seem to mind either the pets or cuddles.
He makes a thoughtful sound.]
As an aside, I've noticed the children don't like the water, like the rest of the natives here, but they're less wary than the adults. Perhaps the natives fear of it is learned.
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Mm. Plenty of time, then.
[ it's interesting, what he says about the water. he's been curious about it, though not enough to try going into it, and he hums thoughtfully, huffing a sound and pushing his head against anderson's hand. baskerville is doing the same, meanwhile. ]
It's odd. I know people that've gone into it with no problems, and I can't sense anything wrong with it, so what are the natives so afraid of? It's obviously not water in and of itself, but... the ocean, specifically, and I doubt they're worried about sharks.
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To Alucard's comments regarding the beach, he makes another thoughtful sound. He's stepped into the water himself. As far as he can tell, there's nothing immediately amiss about it.]
There might be repercussions for straying too close to the water? Or if they take a dip, perhaps a Wicked Witch of the West occurs?
[Forgive his wording; some of the children in Rome liked that movie.]
One of these days, we ought to throw a LIEs employee in there, see what happens.
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he'd smile, if he could, at the reference. he's seen the movie, once, when integra was small, so at least he gets it. ]
Imagine, if that were why.
[ he barks (hah) a laugh at the idea, tongue running along sharp teeth lazily as he settles back in. he likes the sound of it, and his tail is still going, and he knows it's silly, but-- ]
Dibs on first throw. Unless you want to do it together. If they don't die, I can make them think they just fell in on accident. It's a perfect crime.
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Oh? You'll make them think they accidentally fell across thirty or so feet of sand, through the shallows, and into the deep of the water? Truly, it's an infallible plan.
[He's teasing, obviously in a good mood.
He lets his hand stroke idly down Alucard's back while he speaks again.]
Making them think they fell in one of those ponds in the Up might work.
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[ he's teasing too, but it's true. those people could use a good migraine as punishment. his back does a little arch as anderson pets him but then he's flopping again, truly content. ]
Though, if you want to go for ease, I suppose that works. Though, honestly, hopefully they just drown.
[ alucard, that's awful. oh, he's going to keep going. ]
A tragic accident. No one could have seen it coming. Lost at sea. What a way to go.
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I've noticed anything that washes out to sea eventually ends up back on the beach. No body retrieval required.
[He rakes his fingers down Alucard's spine, since he seems to enjoy it.]
Of course, we could always tie them into a sack full of bricks before throwing them in.
[Enjoy that awful reference to the murder of anabaptists.]
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[ he huffs a pleased sound, then pulls back a bit to look at him with all six eyes, which is weird, but also, like, really? ]
Shall we call it a crusade next?
[ ah, but he's teasing. think of all the turks he impaled. he burrows back against anderson's shoulder again, sighing. ]
I want to throw Thomas into the sea. Let's put him in with some bricks.
[ no, alucard, you can't murder the vampire fetishist. ]
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[Apparently there is a means of getting to a place called Veracity, but that location hasn't been made available to them yet, assuming it ever will be.
He gives a wry smile at Alucard's comment.]
I wouldn't be opposed. I want to say we're fighting Eris, in spirit, but as we have actual figures from mythology here, it doesn't quite work. We assigned Millennium Mars, if you're curious.
[The 9th Crusade didn't quite work out, but hey... it was a good effort.]
And you know perfectly well we can't, as much as I might like to.
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[ veracity is on his mind, once in a while, but he's not particularly inclined to want to go there, after what happened in the fort. still, it exists, and so too must other cities... right? it's a thought for other times.
he snorts. of course he wouldn't be opposed. ]
Mm. Mars was fitting. The appearance of mythological figures here does make it more difficult to put a name to it, though. Maybe we'll come up with something as time goes on. Something that won't become a problem when that figure happens to appear a week later.
[ this though, earns him a huffy, sulky noise. he really wants to kill that guy. ]
Other methods?
[ no, you can't impale him either!!! ]