Stitched Up Hearts (Alucard X Fem! reader)

Strange Travelers

It's a colder day today, not warm or sunny like yesterday was. It makes the shadows colder, and snow still clings to the ground in the places the sun does not reach it. Since there is no longer work for me around the castle, I busy my hands with other chores. For now, we are walking to fill the water buckets. There is a small creek not far from the castle, similar to the one Alucard and I used to splash around in when we were younger. I remember pushing each other in, and waiting till long after it was considered too cold to be swimming before we stopped going for the year.

"Is that truly how you view Trevor?" I ask my husband. The question had been eating away at the back of my mind for a while now. Ever since a few days ago when we were laughing at the dolls we created. Of course, poking fun at the Belmont was deserved, but I felt he was attributed less credit than he deserved. He may be a drunk and a fool, but at least he was a brave fool. He handled his solitude well, far better than I had, and for that he should be commended.

"Excuse me?" Alucard tilted his head slightly, confused as to what I meant. Sometimes I forget that not everyone can read my thoughts, and I will start a conversation with him, neglecting to remember the first half of that conversation had transpired in my own mind.

"That impression of him you did a few days ago. Is that really what you think he's like? I know it was only a joke but, do you honestly think he is more stupid than mud?" I can feel the cloth of my pants scraping against each other on my inner thighs, my shirt tucked into them.

"Do you think he is intelligent? I was unaware you had grown so fond of the Belmont." Adrian responded.

"I just think he deserves more credit than what you give him. You know we couldn't have done all this without him. He may not be the brightest but he has endured much, and he bears it with far more grace than I." I explain, using my spare hand to reach up and brush Alucard's hair back behind his shoulders. It fell down over them when he looked down at me. My other hand is holding his.

Alucard frowned, thinking. I wondered what was running through that pretty head of his. He stayed silent for a few more moments as we reached the creek. I kneel down and roll up my sleeves so they would not get wet. I remember how, years ago, I would have rather walked around with shopping sleeves for the rest of the day.

I stop for a moment, listening. A snap of a twig on the ground under a foot. My eyes shift over to the sound, my head not moving. Alucard hears it too, his movements have slowed. I make eye contact with him, bringing up the bucket and reaching for the second one. He gives me a short nod, both of us understanding what we will do next. I dip the bucket into the ice cool water, reaching past the bucket and for a smooth, round stone. It's slick like a fish under my fingers with algae. I close my eyes and listen. Fast, light footfalls in the distance. Someone is running. The crunching sound of a taught arrow string being pulled back, readying its aim.

I hurl the rock in the direction of the archer, and in that same second Alucard speeds off toward the runner. My legs run fast, running to catch the archer. The rock has knocked him over on the ground, he is scrambling for his bow, which lays a few feet away. I step on his back, causing him to lay flat on the ground again. All I can see right now is the back of his head, long dark hair pulled back into a short ponytail. "Get up. If you take one step away from me I'll kill you." I order, retracting my foot from his back and allowing him to stand.

He does not step away from me. "Turn around." I command him again. I am met with a long, round face. Tanned skin and freckles cheeks under a mess of brown curls. His eyebrows, straight as arrows, have identical slits in their middles. "Walk." I press a hand, against his back, assuring he feels the sharpness of my talons through the cloth.

"We have come a long way. Please, I need to know if he's all right." a woman's voice says in the clearing. It is thick with an accent I haven't heard before, unsure if I could place the region just yet.