#one of them being drac himself

[bookwyrminspiration]

I’ve had lucille for 154 pages and GOD lucy if I could give you a new author I WOULD you deserve it and I’m so sorry

[arbitrarity]

people seem to have some mixed interpretations and feelings about today's entry. but my reading was that it was absolutely heart-breaking and emotionally charged on multiple levels.

to me this felt like a mirror of the suitor-squad proposal day. that day was full of happiness and excited love, hope for the future, with some bittersweetness of Lucy having to say 'no' to some; this one was full of mourning and painful love, with dread of the future, but a bittersweetness of connection, devotion, and 'yes' to Mina from some.

I feel like the polycule can be read as platonic, romantic, or a combination of relationships involving either/both. but regardless, these scenes show the interconnectedness of our characters and their care for each other. the men are kneeling in front of Lucy/Mina and making a vow. we tragically were denied a wedding rite for Lucy because of her (un)death, yet we (also tragically) get a funeral rite for Mina despite her (half) life.

[dreaming-of-lu]

cause it's me birfday eue decided to spoil myself with the soulmates au. A special surprise at the end 👀

Time

Normally, one would scream at the sight of a vast, wide open field of grass rather than their room being the first sight to see when waking up,

"Did I fucking die?" instead was the first thing that came out of your mouth. The wind was cool against your skin, lightly ruffling your bed mess hair. Miles around was knee high grass, no trees or civilization around. Just the green grass of mother earth and the blue skies with clouds that looked straight out of Ghibli movie.

"I died, didn't I?"

"I wouldn't necessarily say that-" a short yelp left your lips at the sudden voice appearing next to your ear. You scrambled back in shock, stumbling over yourself to get away from the mysterious, possibly stranger danger. Your eyes landed on the man that somehow happened to quietly sneak up on you, your words caught in your throat at the sight of him.

Long pointy ears, shoulder-length blonde hair, red and blue markings that framed his face, low brows lightly furrowed and...his right eye is shut due to a scar overlining it. Though his remaining eye made your breath hitched due to how blue it was,

"Yeah, I'm dead."

A soft snort left him before clearing his throat, "I promise you aren't, what is your name?"

"I-," you made a face at him, "why should I trust you?"

He lift his hand, pinching his arm that made your own sting, "Ow!"

"Because I am your soulmate."

First

The night seemed endless due to how long it was dragging on. With the ailed fragments of sleep begging for him to close his eyes, yet they held wide open to the stars of the night.

'Can't sleep, handsome?' their voice was like warm water drifting around him in a bath after a long day of hard work. A pleased, tired sigh left his lips, making his muscles eased from the tension his body felt. He weakly smiles to himself,

'Not without you by my side, that is.' The light snort that they gave him had his smile become more genuine, and heart pounding against his chest. The soft flush of heat burned his cheeks and neck as they softly laughed at his comment,

'Ever so the heartbreaker, my love,' they lightly teased.

'Maybe to others,' he huffs, 'though to you, my sweet, I shall carry it carefully as if it's a precious gem throughout the land, even when I meet you. It'll still be beside me.'

It's suddenly quiet, causing him to worry and flustered that he might've said something wrong to them. Only to hear a soft sniffle, 'That's...that's the sweetest, sappiest thing any one had said to me. You're too cute.'

His ears wiggled in delight. Goddesses, he felt like a school girl due to how giddy and mushy he felt, 'I'll shower you in them till you melt in them, my heart.'

They tearfully laughed, 'Okay, sap bucket, try and get some sleep, hmm?'

'Stay with me until I do?'

'Always, my darling.'

Drac

"Why this?" You blinked up from your book at the platinum blonde that took his place next to you on the sofa in the parlor room. He wasn't wearing the normal day to day werewolf shawl, instead, fortaking the shawl and adventuring attire to comfortable clothes to lounge around in. It seemed Aryll was put to sleep easily, since her moans and groans of pain used to distill the air of the house they both reside in.

The chain soft snores in the other room was definitely one to be jealous of due to how easily they knocked out. Though, you can't bring yourself to be angry too much, since the beds were soft enough to ease any ailments they might've felt throughout the day.

You shut the book, placing it aside on the table next to the sofa before turning your attention to him, "why what? did something happen?"

He gives you a flat look, grumbling lightly as he rolled his left sleeve to reveal dark ink marked upon his pale skin. He nods his head to it, "we share the same marks."

You stared wide eyed at the ink that lined his thick forearm; vines rolled around in swirls, flowers with fairies splattered here and there. The same picture that lined your own,

"I-I uhm-"

"While I don't mind the pretty ink, however, getting side eyed for it is not one that I want to deal with," He raised a brow at the shock silence that overcame your form.

"I...I think we're...yanno...soulmates?" you give him a sheepish look, grimacing when his stare hardens.

"...Well, that explains it," he leans backwards in the seat, "...could've chose a different place for it though."

"Asshole," you puffed, "I wanted something pretty to make me feel a little more confident and-"

You squeaked when his hand cupped your chin, he carefully maneuver you in laying position. His other hand came right down next to your head as his body hovered over you, he lowered his face, letting his lips ghost against yours. Gosh, was his eyes always this intense?

He smirked, "is this your way of saying we're married?"

"...you ass."

He snickers.

[wynought]

to me it is evident that jonathan already knows that his situation is precarious at best and actively dangerous at worst. all the "he doesnt see the red flags" stuff that people used to say about him is utter nonsense.

he recognizes that drac is purposefully keeping him awake at night and, while he doesnt remark upon his suspicions, his wording and choice of details to include (e.g. drac going "you must be less interesting, so i don't keep you awake", which is more a reflection on drac being a bad host than on any fault of jonathan's) makes it clear that he understands that this is done on purpose and not by accident.

he keeps taking note of situations in which he would expect to see other people, but doesn't. he is aware that he is isolated and alone with a dangerous man (he took special care to highlight drac's unnatural strength and cold skin, the nauseating feeling he got upon being too close during that first supper, and he keeps taking note of any incident in which drac makes him feel uneasy - the nasty smiles, the way drac comes and goes without letting jonathan know when to expect him).

he is wants to be the model picture of an english gentleman guest, trying not to snoop and wander about the castle, when he doesn't have his host's permission. still, he can't help himself but try the doors, and the second door he tries is already locked (which is, of course, important in conjunction with the fact that drac tells him that he wouldnt wish to go anywhere that was behind a locked door, anyways). additionally, he notices that there are no mirrors, which he tries to frame as "oh, i am lacking one of the comforts i am used to, haha, sure weird that these transylvanian people don't have those", but it gives him pause - especially, considering the obvious wealth and opulence he is otherwise surrounded with.

to me this all reads as a continuation of that sentiment from may 4th where he already penned down that if he doesn't make it back himself, he hopes that his journal does (and that one of the last sentiments he wished to convey was his love for mina, i am still not okay about that). obviously, he isn't yet at the point where he wants to give shape to his fears by outright writing them down, but he is meticulously keeping track of all those red flags people joke about him missing. if he wasn't, he wouldn't be writing them down. their inclusion in his journal shows that jonathan knows what's going on (with the limited information he has, obviously), shows his wariness of his host, and shows that he isn't sure if he will safely return to mina.

[jo-harrington]

On-the-Job Training (A Store Manager Verse Story - Steve Harrington/Reader)

Pairing: Steve Harrington x Reader

Summary: Steve has a crush on the Dippin' Dots cashier.

Warnings/Themes: AU where the Upside Down doesn't terrorize Hawkins. Late Summer of 1985, Steve and Robin work at Scoops, Reader works at Dippin' Dots, Mutual Pining, Flirting, Enemies to Lovers(sort of?), Tie in with the Store Manager Verse

Note: Ok what started off as a silly little conversation about what flavor chapstick each ST character would use turned into this and I typically don't write Steve...but I had to give him some love.

Tagging my loves who were integral to that convo to thank them for inspiration especially Drac who started it all. This is for you bb. @dr-aculaaa @mopeymopeymouse @chestylarouxx @somnambulic-thing @fracturedarkness @br0ck-eddie

Technically slightly anachronistic because Dippin' Dots didn't open until 1988 but I'm a stickler for accuracy in the regular series. This is just a fun little do-dad.

You can find my masterlist here for more fics featuring pretty much exclusively Eddie Munson content but also a little Steve.

Please do not interact if you are not 18+.

Largely unedited; I didn't even re-read it. It's might suck. Enjoy!

---

"Ahoy! One U.S.S. Butterscotch!"

Steve never thought that this would be his future after graduation.

This summer he should have been living it up before he went away to college and made something of himself. Lifeguarding at the pool, going to all the parties, hanging out with his friends.

Instead, his life went to shit, Nancy Wheeler had broken up with him, he had gotten rejection letter after rejection letter from the schools he had applied to...and instead of working at the pool like he had every summer since he turned 16, he had a crappy job slinging ice cream at Scoops Ahoy of all places at the new StarCourt Mall.

"Thanks so much," the sweet lady who had placed the order smiled at him and handed the sundae to her son. "Look at that Frankie, your favorite." The little boy shot Steve a grin complete with his two front teeth missing and Steve melted a little bit.

Alright, it wasn't so bad. He got to make people smile, he got some spending money--which was nice since his dad had pretty much cut him off, although his mom was sneaking him some cash on the side.

"Look alive dingus," Robin called from the window separating the front of the ice cream parlor from the backroom. "Your schmoopsie poo is here."

"Shut up Rob!" Steve groaned through gritted teeth.

One of the perks of working at the mall was that he got to interact with people of all shapes and sizes and yeah...Steve had tried to use it as a means to get over Nancy. He'd had little hours-long crushes on fellow mall employees, customers, Robin--although working with her made that difficult--hell there was even a manager that had caught his eye towards the beginning of summer except he'd seen Eddie "The Freak" Munson of all people hanging around her.

Although after a few months of seeing Eddie around StarCourt not being a wastoid menace, Steve had to admit...well he wasn't that bad either.

The one who'd caught his eye the most though was you, and yeah...he'd developed an actual big little long-lasting crush.

You, who came around for a root-beer float most afternoons.

You, whose smile made his heart skip a little.

You in your pink polo, teal apron, and white visor with the words Dippin' Dots emblazoned on the front.

The enemy.

And you never let him forget it either.

Steve had been heart eyes over you the first time you had entered into Scoops territory to order your float. Undercover in casual summer clothes a week after the mall had opened. There was just something about you, your smile, your laugh.

Robin teased that he said that about everyone; Steve ignored her.

Then you opened your mouth and said the float was good but the service could have been better. That Steve should stop by Dippin' Dots sometime and see how it was really done.

Shots fired.

It really hurt at first. This was his first real job outside of the community pool, one he had been excited to get. He was really nice, tried his best; why didn't you think so?

"It's called flirting," Robin insisted. "God, you really suck, you know that? How can you ask people out willy nilly and then miss someone flirting with you right in front of your face? Flirt back next time."

So he did.

Every so often he'd mosey across the mall to your kiosk, order a small vanilla cup, and throw a little insult of his own your way. Usually something about how tiny balls of ice cream could never beat an actual scoop. Or about how you didn't count his change the right way, or that your visor was on crooked.

You wouldn't hesitate to get your own comment in. Especially about his choice in flavor.

"You work at an ice cream parlor and you order vanilla?" you questioned. "A hundred flavors to choose from at scoops; do you only get vanilla there too? Vanilla...is good but when you have variety? Order something exciting one day, and then we can talk business, Stevie."

Oof, it steamed him.

But not enough to stop playing the game.

And it left you both grinning so who was he to end the fun.

So when you showed up at Scoops today after not being around for a few days and your smile didn't reach your eyes like it usually did...Steve was suddenly overcome with...well he didn't really know.

"Ahoy, uh, sailor," he greeted and tried to put on his biggest award-winning, tip-earning smile.

"Ahoy," you replied weakly.

"Root beer float?" he asked, already heading over to the case to start scooping ice cream into a cup.

"Uh," you hesitated. "No, just...just a small vanilla cup today."

Steve froze and looked at you. Your shoulders were slumped, you had your visor in your hand, and you were pointedly avoiding eye contact with him.

What was...what was wrong with you?

Where was your fight? Where was your fire? Why, all of a sudden, was your game over?

"Hey, uhm," he coughed awkwardly. "Is everything ok?"

"Yeah, Steve," you nodded absently.

"You always get root beer."

"I just want vanilla today."

"The special is salted caramel? I can give you a sample if you're--"

"No, I just want vanilla," you cut him off and rolled your eyes. "You always get vanilla. Why is it a problem if I suddenly do? Vanilla is good too. Maybe vanilla is just...what we both want ok? Nothing else."

He was shocked. That wasn't playful annoyance in your voice; you were just...annoyed.

"Sure," he agreed. "Sure. One small vanilla coming right up."

He got your ice cream and rang you out, and as you were about to leave, he called after you.

"See you in a little while?" he asked.

"If you want." You waved goodbye and headed out of the ice cream parlor.

Steve turned and looked at Robin who simply rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"What just happened?" he asked.

"You're hopeless," she sighed and slammed the shutters on the window closed.

---

Steve roamed around the mall on his break.

Typically, he'd make his way to Dippin' Dots but...that just seemed like a waste of time today.

He'd fixated on your visit for the rest of his shift until his break, analyzing everything he said, everything he did. Everything that could have made you mad at him.

Once he got Robin out of her hiding spot in the back room, he monologued all of his thoughts to her.

She watched him pace back and forth, called him a dingus a few times, a loser a few other times, and then finally sent him on his break with some last words.

"I know you're hearing everything they're saying Steve," she began. "But are you really listening? You just keep...ordering vanilla."

"Uh. Yeah. That's the game."

"It's not a game you...ughhhhh! GO!" She pointed to the exit. "Before I throttle you."

Why couldn't she just tell him? What had he done?

In his rumination, he'd been chewing at his lips. A habit he had pretty much done his entire life when he got nervous.

Shit, and he'd left his chapstick in the car; it was hot, it probably melted by now.

That was one of the little ways you made his life a little better...through your teasing. You had told him, once, that his lips looked dry.

"Maybe invest in some chapstick or something."

He'd gone to Melvald's that same night that you told him and got a 3-pack of strawberry chapstick. All the while wondering if it meant you had been looking at his lips for a while or...

But it was...just another little jab right? Another little flirt? Another part of your game?

Still, he never knew when you might show up so the chapstick became a constant--something that soothed him even, gave him courage--and he always had a tube tucked into the pocket of his shorts, or on the register, or in the cupholder of his car. To swipe on if he knew he was about to see you...or hoped he was.

And now...he desperately needed it, needed his strawberry chapstick--needed you--and it was nowhere to be found.

Steve stopped in his tracks and looked at the stores around him.

WaldenBooks, Regis Salon, JH Camera Repair.

Claires.

Bingo.

He'd seen little kids with their play makeup and sparkly plastic jewelry post up in one of the booths at Scoops after they spent their allowance money at Claire's. He had to find strawberry chapstick there. He'd even take cherry. Something.

Anything.

Steve crossed into the pink-and-purple-and-pop-music-filled oasis to a melodic "Welcome In" from the employee helping a little girl by the ear piercing booth. And as out of place as he felt, he was immediately relieved to see a wall full of eyeshadow palettes and glitter hairspray.

He closed the distance and frantically searched the wall, but it was all novelty makeup. There was one package of Dr. Pepper lip smackers, but the package was half-ripped and the cap was missing; he was a little worried but he figured it was better than nothing.

He was about to snatch it off the hook when that voice sounded behind him.

"Did you need help finding anything?" He immediately turned on his heel to find the employee--the manager, Eddie Munson's girlfriend--standing there in a flourish of tulle and fluorescent colors. "Oh! That's a customer favorite...looks like it's damaged though, let me just..."

She reached out to take the package but Steve reacted instinctually. He quickly grabbed it and clutched it to his chest.

"I don't mind," he tried to reason. "I don't care if it's missing the cap."

"Listen, I can't sell it to you if it's damaged," the manager explained. "It's just not safe. Is there anything else I can help you find though?"

She reached for the package again but he held it back.

"I need this," Steve tried again.

"Oh...kay."

"Because I messed up and this...you know the cashier down at the Dippin' Dots kiosk? Well...I don't know...I pissed them off or something and I just need to...go down and talk to them and I can't."

"So the lip balm is a gift for them? To make amends?"

"No...it's for me because my lips are dry." Steve sighed. "I...ok I know it sounds crazy, but I swear. It's...they got me to start using chapstick because they said my lips were dry and it's this thing we do. We go back and forth and we tease each other.

"But they're mad at me now, and they didn't...I mean they ordered vanilla. They never order vanilla. They hate it when I order vanilla."

"Uh huh." The manager's eyes went a little soft. "I'm not...really following the logic...but I get it."

"You do?"

"You like each other. But you're just...going back and forth. And no one has really...admitted it," she observed. She suddenly burst into laughter and Steve cocked his head to one side in confusion. "Sorry, sorry...it's just...whatafuckincoincidence.

"So are you the one who's afraid of being rejected? Or...are they...or..."

Cue the record scratch in Steve's head.

Rejection.

All summer...all year actually...Steve had been faced with one rejection after another. First Nancy, then all of the college applications, his dad and now...all of the little fleeting mall crushes that he'd asked out that had said no.

Robin had even made a scoreboard that sat in the back whenever someone turned him down.

He thought all this time...he'd become immune to it. But with you...it was easier to think it was just a game than to possibly face the reality that if he asked you out...you'd say no and then the little game would be ruined. And his hopes would be dashed.

He didn't realize that all of his waffling could potentially be hurting you too.

"Why don't you," the manager continued when Steve hesitated to answer, "go down there and talk to them? Even if they're mad at you. Communication is very important. I'm sure if you explain everything, or even...just show that you're willing to bridge the gap, they'd be willing to listen. The worst they could say is no, but if they're already mad, you have nothing to lose. See if they'll give you a chance."

"So I...shouldn't order vanilla this time?" He looked up at her and asked, recalling your words.

Order something exciting, and then we can talk business.

The door had been open for him to ask you out this whole time.

And that's why you ordered vanilla earlier. Because Vanilla meant...meant that this...flirtation...this game...wasn't going anywhere. He hadn't made a move, so you didn't want to wait anymore.

God, he was so stupid.

"Uh, no...don't do that," the manager smiled kindly. She reached out for the broken lip balm and took it from him. "I'll just...damage this out."

"Wait...but my lips are still dry," Steve floundered. "I still need chapstick."

"Do you think there's gonna be some kissing happening?" the manager's eyes narrowed. "I said talk to them, not...plant one on them."

"I just need...something," he begged. "Strawberry...if you have it."

"I think we have strawberry flavored lip gloss by the register."

"I'll take it."

---

So there Steve was, in the concourse by JCPenney, patiently waiting in the line for Dippin' Dots with sticky, strawberry-flavored lips tinted a very nice shade of pink.

As soon as he had swiped the gloss on...as silly as he had felt...he had been reminded of you.

"Next!" your voice sounded every so often and the line got shorter and shorter, and Steve's courage got weaker and weaker. The Claire's manager had been right though...communication...the worst you could tell Steve was "no."

"Next!" You'd be just another tally on Robin's scoreboard. And she could call him a dingus again. She really enjoyed doing that. So some good would at least come from his failure.

"Next!" He'd also get...a cup of Dippin' Dots which...if he had to admit, he kinda enjoyed. He got all the Scoops ice cream he wanted for free but this was different. Ice Cream of the Future and all that. He sort of expected Henderson to come up with something like this, the little nerd; well, if he could never show his face here again, he'd ask the kids if they could figure out how to make some kind of futuristic ice cream for him.

"Ne--oh!" Steve finally got to the front of the line and saw your shocked face. He smiled and waved as he approached the register.

"Hey," he greeted. "I told you I'd see you around."

"You did," you said flatly and scrunched your nose. "So...the usual? Small vanilla cup?"

"Uh no..." Steve said hesitantly. You raised an eyebrow in question. "I uh...can I get a large..."

"Large vanilla?" You sniffed.

"Large Rainbow Ice," he recited after squinting at the menu board. "It's time for something new."

You stared at him silently and Steve couldn't help but doubt himself.

What if Rainbow Ice was the wrong answer? Should he have gone with Banana Split? Shit he should have just stuck with Strawberry. It was his favorite. Strawberry chapstick, strawberry gloss, strawberry ice cream. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

"Yeah," you finally answered with a beaming smile and Steve's heart soared. "Yeah it is time for something new, isn't it?"

Next Part: Incremental Planning

[sweetbunpura]

🪷 Crimson Lotus 🪷

It's a relatively quiet afternoon at NRC. Yuu and Grim were out for the day, hanging with the first years, while Rollo stayed at Ramshackle. He turned a page of his novel as he set down his tea. The soft crackling of the fireplace was the only sound in the dorm. The hairs on the back of his neck flew up before the feeling of magic filled the room. Rollo jumped as thunder echoed throughout followed by Malleus appearing in a shot of green lightning. He was angry, pupils narrowed into pinpricks as he stared at Rollo.

"Drac-"

"You." The way he spoke was so visceral as he approached him.

Rollo scrambled out of the chair and summoned his bell staff. "Draconia, for once, I don't wish to fight you."

"Lies." Malleus held up a glass container with...a Crimson Lotus in it. "If you do not wish to fight, then why have I found these scattered throughout my dorm?"

Rollo paled as he stared at the flower, watching as the petals bumped against the glass at an attempt to get to Malleus.

"I haven't planted any-"

"This dreaded plant nearly killed Lilia and Silver!" Malleus' voice shook the old dorm as dust fell from the rafters. "Child of Man trusted you and you betrayed her!"

"I would do no such thing!" Rollo yelled. "Why would I put my relationship with her in jeopardy like that?!"

"I refuse to believe a word that comes out of your mouth." Malleus summoned his staff. "And I will not take this betrayal lying down."

The two stared at each other, neither one moving a muscle until they heard the door open behind them.

"Oh good, we've arrived just in time it seems."

Rollo turned to see Riddle entering the lounge area, followed by the other leaders and Jamil instead of Kalim, all of them holding glass containers with Crimson Lotus' in them.

"You as well, Rosehearts?"

"Indeed, all of us found them wrapped around various parts of your dorms and our members."

No, no, no. This can not be happening.

Rollo's forest eyes bounced from all the containers to each of the respective dorm representatives. He swallowed thickly and gripped his staff as his body trembled.

"Potato spent so much time on you only for it to be thrown back in her face." Vil sighs. "What a disappointment."

"I didn't plant them!" He's frantic at this point. "I've been here all day!"

"That's bullshit." Leona growled. "No one else knows how to grow these, but you, Insect."

"I'm being framed." Rollo backed up as the others advanced on him.

"So desperate to try and shift the blame elsewhere, are we?" Azul raises an eyebrow. "Truly pathetic and you used to be a man who took value in appearances."

Before Rollo could try and defend himself, a heavy collar sealed itself around his neck. He wheezed at the new weight as his staff disappeared. Rollo gripped at the metal collar as he fixed his eyes on a cold glare from Riddle. Now, he had no way of defending himself and the wall of mages was closing in on him.

"What in the fuck are you guys doing?"

Yuu. Yuu would be his saving grace, surely. Rollo broke through the wall and stood behind Yuu, his hands gripped at the back of her hoodie.

"Yuu. Yuu." Rollo swallowed. "Please, you have to believe me..."

"Believe you about what?"

"I didn't do it."

"Do what?" Yuu turned her head to see the collection of Crimson Lotus'. "Oh shit."

"Yuu, he's manipulating you." Jamil spoke as he approached her. "We don't want a repeat of Fleur City. He needs to be quickly dealt with."

Rollo felt time freeze and his blood turn to ice when Yuu looked at him from the corner of her eye as she slowly turned to face him.

"Please..." His voice was small as he begged. "I didn't do it. I would have no need to do it. I'm not willing to jeopardize our relationship for this."

"Then explain to me what's in front of my face."

"I-I can't." He's desperate. "I don't know how they got here or how they were planted in the first place."

"Do you still want to get rid of magic?"

"W-What?"

"Do. You. Still. Want. To. Get. Rid. Of. Magic?"

Yes, deep down Rollo still wanted to see magic eradicated from this world, but...

"Not if it means I lose you in the process." He's whispering now.

Yuu's silent when she pulls Rollo's hands off her jacket. "I'm seeing proof that only points to you, but then you're asking me to believe that it wasn't you. I don't know who to side with on this case."

"I'm innocent."

"Maybe you are and maybe you aren't. But I've seen how cold, cut off, and calculating you can be. You're a dozen red flags wrapped up in a bundle." She sighs. "The only reason you're trying to put your best foot forward is because of me. But you've also seen me hurt by magic, regular and overblot riddled, that I firmly believe you would plant these if it meant I was safe."

Well, she wasn't wrong in that regard...

"I'm sorry, Rollo." She stepped away from him and that was all the others needed before he was secured by thorns.

"No!" They start to drag him out of the door. "Yuu!"

Yuu's looking at him with sadness in her eyes as she holds herself.

"Please! I didn't do it!"

She's soon wrapped up in Malleus' embrace and she hides her face in his shirt. Malleus sends him a heated glare and leads her further into the rapidly darkening dorm.

"Yuu! Yuu! YUU!"

Rollo jolted awake, his body tensing and coated in sweat. He threw the covers off of him and rolled out of bed, hitting the wooden floor with a thud. Forest green eyes flick around the room as he tries to calm his breathing down. Nightmare... It was just a nightmare. With a sigh, Rollo slumps against the the bed and takes deep breaths. He's shacking and he never wanted so desperately to curl up and disappear from the world. The sound of creaking stairs followed by the door opening up causes him to lift his head.

Yuu's looking at him with concern in her eyes as she stands in the doorway in her workout clothes. "Rolls?"

She hadn't sent him to meet his maker, instead coming to make sure he was okay. Rollo's on his feet in seconds, nearly tackling Yuu in a tight hug as he buries his face in her neck.

"Hey-"

Rollo starts rambling out apology after apology as she gently rubs his back.

"You're too valuable to lose. You're the best thing that happened to me."

"Oh Rolls." She pulls him out of her shoulder. "It's okay, it was just a nightmare." Yuu gently kisses him, which he eagerly returns. "You're good, you're here."

"I'm here..." He nods and presses his forehead to hers.

Rollo loves Yuu too much to even risk trying to continue his plan. For he would give up everything if that meant that they could stay together.

[greypistacchio]

i swear that this entry is my fave part of the book? memes aside, jonathan is unable to keep avoiding what he knows to be full-on CREEPINESS from the count, and there's such a dramatic shift in his writing. he goes from being all "haha that was weird but ok anyway!!" to connecting the dots QUICKLY. in a single entry he writes down all of these realisations:

Count Dracula is very much aliven't ("I fear I am myself the only living soul within the place")

He's also the only person in this one-man bed and breakfast ("I went cautiously to my own room and found him making the bed. This was odd, but only confirmed what I had all along thought - that there were no servants in the house. (...) If he does himself all these menial offices, surely it is proof that there is no one else to do them.")

As such, HE was the carriage driver that did all the mindfuckery he could think of to creep Jonathan out ("It must have been the Count himself who was the driver of the coach...")

ALSO HOLY SHIT HE HAS SUPERNATURAL POWERS OUCH ("What does it mean that he could control the wolves, as he did, by only holding up his hand in silence?")

but hey he's a tad narcissistic so there's that to play with ("To-night he may talk of himself, if I turn the conversation that way.")

Right now he can't get out even if he tries ("The castle is a veritable prison, and I am a prisoner!)

Drac very deliberately imprisoned him in his B&B Castle ("Of one thing only am I certain; that it is no use making my ideas known to the Count. He knows well that I am imprisoned; and as he has done it himself...")

With each reread I understand less and less why people thought Jonathan wasn't observing or even mildly clever, the man has literally cracked what took the Polycule WEEKS to realise

[zmasters]

Greeting Death, with a Smile

Based on this post by u/lesbianwriterlover69 on Reddit

Sasha tasted blood. She was certain that she was shot at least once, it was the pain that hasn’t registered yet.

The squadron of alien invaders surrounded the poor woman. Sasha was just a small town farmer for a lunar colony turned militia member. She had no idea why the fakarians even bothered attacking a backwater town on a backwater colony. She had no idea why this race of rat-like xenos even attacked a human world in the first place. A show of power? A preemptive strike? Just for the fun of it? She didn’t know, nor care. But after all the raiding, the towns and villages burnt to the ground, and friends and family either killed or enslaved, Sasha knew what she would do to these bastards.

The closest soldier slammed their boot into her stomach, screaming something that vaguely sounded like eldiv. Fuckers couldn’t be bothered to translate the right language to insult her in. They stomped their foot again, blood flying out of Sasha’s mouth and tears rolling down her face as she search her pocket.

The kicking and insults provided a good enough distraction. She had managed to find the thing she was looking for, adrenaline and thankfulness that the alien wasn’t kicking her in the chest being the only things keeping her alive at this point.

The alien raised their foot to stomp again, but Sasha grabbed their foot, using the last of her strength to keep them close. The alien screamed at her in an unknown language as their comrades raised their guns, but everyone froze when they heard beeping.

One of the soldiers tracked the beeping, coming down to their human prisoner and removing her jacket. They discovered that strapped to Sasha’s chest was an improvised explosive.

The seconds felt like hours to Sasha. The alien in her grip barked orders as some of their men tried to pry him out of her death grip. Others readied their weapons, hoping to kill her before she detonated. The poor idiots didn’t know it wasn’t a detonator, but a dead man’ switch. Others made a break for it, hoping to escape the blast radius, comrades be damned.

Sasha’s mind raced. Everything and everyone she loved, everything and everyone she lost, flashed before her eyes. Her mom, dad, siblings, girlfriend, dog, coworkers, friends, neighbors, all gone. All dead. She was the unlucky one to survive the initial orbital bombardment. She was the unlucky one to survive the raids and the random bombings. The sniper attacks. The drone strikes. She survived entire towns being executed, and bombed into rubble. After all of that, Sasha was tired. She was alone. She had nothing to live for, except one thing. That’s why she was smiling. That’s why she willingly volunteered for this mission. The boot of Captain Shilis was in her hand. The man who personally killed the love of her life was mere seconds from death himself.

“Look into my eyes, fucker!” Sasha laughed in perfect fakari, echoing what Shilis said Zari a year ago to the day. “I want to see you die!”

Zari. Zari flashed across her mind. That cyan-scaled drac was one of the refugees who fled fakarian expansion, eventually finding a job at the same farm Sasha worked at. The coworkers quickly became friends, and after five years, the two were engaged. The wedding was planned for a nice sunny day. The anniversary of when the two first met. A year later, it’s the anniversary of Zari’s execution.

One last tear rolled down Sasha’s face as her grip loosened. It was enough for Shilis to break the grip, but it was too late to escape. Sasha will be with Zari again, watching and laughing at this bastard in hell.

[cry-ptidd]

Nev, you absolutely brilliant and beautiful and talented mastermind!

I need to hear about your thoughts and opinions on pre-canon Alucard aka Dracula!

First of all anon I'm gonna kiss you and hug you and serve you burek with a warm drink and a smooch on the forehead

Second of all,

Long, long yapping below 👇 🗣️

Now, I don't know if you meant Dracula as in in-canon Hellsing Dracula or Bram Stoker's Dracula, so I'll do both thanks to the power of autism. Vlad III isn't included bc I don't wanna.

Also this is just my opinion and mild analysis of both medias, not a properly structured essay.

Dracula (1897) - Bram Stoker

Ok so first of all, Dracula is one of my favorite books. I adore gothic horror and the spooky melancholic supernatural atmosphere of most gothic novels. I consider Dracula a masterpiece of horror, even with its faults, idc.

The epistolary structure of it makes the horror progressive and building, despite the fact that alarm bells ring out every single second of Johnathan's stay at Chateau Drac. The various themes of temptation and danger and oh my god the danger followed me home oh god oh fuck are fascinating, and the human group is interesting (also Mina was done dirty).

But also, it's an inherently queer novel, which, as a queer person who loves horror, i adore. Bram Stoker was really fucking queer, but that's something he hated about himself and suppressed; it's no surprise that the count's entire character is so fruity in itself, he represents Stoker's own repressed queerness. Drac is, in the book, inherently sexual - the exchange of fluids to turn pure, virginal ladies into hot deadly sexy vampire seductresses, and the fact that he protects Johnathan from his brides and is always so... Like That with him makes him so interesting.

The scene where the count takes great offense at being told that he has never loved by one of his brides is one of my favorites in terms of characterization, because Dracula doesn't have any need to bullshit at that moment. He could've just told her to stfu and back off, or even let them eat Johnathan. But instead he gets offended because the remark hit a nerve. He wants to love and to be loved, but his methods are rather... unconventional and predatory to the Proper and Orthodox humans of the story. Rip Drac, you would've loved (and been loved by) today's monsterfuckers.

We're gonna ignore the fact that the supercool and awesome expert amazing professor Abraham Van Helsing is Stoker's self-insert and that he's the one that (or at least greatly helps the group) hunt down Dracula, the representation of unorthodox desire and sexy, vampiric existence.

Dracula in the Hellsing universe

Ok so this one is interesting.

First of all I want to address how fucking funny it is that Alucard tried to fuck both Mina and her husband and fumbled them both but that's a topic I think he'd get mopey and very bitter about so let's not.

Hellsing Dracula is really interesting. In the novel, we're not given the count's pov (why would we? He's the villain anyway.) but in Hellsing we do, and we get it very often. We know his childhood, his identity, but most importantly his philosophy and personality.

Alucard's personality changed a bit over the years:

Vlad was arrogant out of desperation and survival; he had to be strong, because if he's not then he'll be crushed and his prayers won't be heard by the god he worships with battle, and he "can't be defeated, ever." He can't afford to be.

Dracula was arrogant because he was powerful and unchained. He was the master, he was a monster not leashed by morality or conventionality and religion and even his body was above what a human could ever do. He knew he was a threat and he relished in it. How could any of those puny humans beat him? The Count Dracula? But they did.

Alucard is a snarky asshole that didn't lose any arrogance but it changed shape; it's not that he can't be defeated, it's by whom. He carefully chooses his fancied opponents and clings to them like a leech, at least emotionally, and puts them on this pedestal where they're the only ones who may. Any other fight is just to pass the time. Those sniveling cowards can't defeat him, but those proud human warriors can. And he's the one who decides what's worthy or not, because he's a top-tier level threat. (When he tried to stop Anderson from using the nail, he basically told him Anderson was created just to defeat him.)

But let's get back to Dracula here for a sec. That arrogance comes with any vampire because that's what they do, they're hot and sexy and broody and egotistical, stealing blood and beauty for their own sakes. But he's also really damn sad. I imagine that he gets bored after a while, after the novelty of cool supernatural tyranny wore off. The count has all reason to be confident; he's on top of the food chain in all aspects.

But what do you do when you're at the top?

You don't have anyone with you. Those brides are companions, not significant others, hell they're not even named in the novel or barely acknowledged by him. Those humans are prey, not equals. He can try to portray himself as basically animalistic, he has emotions and he doesn't like that he has emotions. He's just really fucking sad.

Like. This is literally the most pathetic man I've ever seen.

The fact that he doesn't seem to hold a grudge against Abraham and his crew - on the contrary, he seems to admire them and puts them on a pedestal - shows that he longed to be beaten. He was tired. He needed novelty.

Now i don't know what fucked up experiments Abraham did on that poor thing but clearly he wasn't as powerful as Alucard is, but I doubt that increase in power changed much of anything to be honest. Man is just as miserable as he was before, but now he actually has a purpose - he has someone to serve, a master, someone to cling to.

And boy does he cling to them.

He respects Abraham and Arthur, both men who've undeniably hurt him, Abraham with the experiments and Arthur by leaving him to rot for 20 years (understandable, yes, but still I wouldn't like it if that was me) and yet he's shown them great respect. It's almost Stockholm syndrome (something that I don't believe in and isn't backed by science, but the idea stands) and his idea of any kind of functional relationship is unfathomably fucked up.

I won't dwell on Alucard too much since this is about Dracula, but it's actually rather easy to piece together his mental state and outlook on life with the few pieces we got. Someone please come help this man.

That's that!

I would also like to shoutout to @catsvrsdogscatswin for their wonderful characterization of Dracula and Alucard altogether, but mostly in their fic Kaleidoscope, which is unironically and not hyperbole my favorite fic on ao3 up to date.

Seriously. Go check it out.

[thecagedsong]

tl:dr Johnathon’s experiences with Dracula explain his different choice from Lucy’s suitors regarding their loved one turning into a vamp.

I know everyone is jumping on the comparison between Johnathon’s willingness to join Mina in damnation verse Arthur+Quincy+Jack purifying/killing Lucy to save her soul. And everyone wants to compare who loved who more, and how it’s a metaphor for being unwilling to see your loved one change.

Boo.

Try the different experiences with Vampires. Yes they’ve all read the book (probably. Mina might have done an executive summary and then they had Van Helsing’s lecture at the very least) but even reading each other’s experiences, their own experiences are going to trump their understanding of the change. 

The Suitors saw Lucy beg Van Helsing to stop the change. To keep her from becoming a monster. To never let her hurt Arthur, “please dear god, love me enough to keep me from becoming that.” They saw the shifts between Lucy-Lucy and Vamp-Lucy on her deathbed. They buried her. She was already dead, something was possessing her body and making it hurt others. They saw her attack a child. She snarled at them, a child’s blood dripping from her lips, saw her hypnotize Arthur to kill him (the very thing she refused to do as herself!) then saw her flinch away from a crucifix, snarling. 

More importantly, that’s all they saw of her. Vamp lore translates the difference in faculties to be between new vamps and old vamps, or maybe Lucy’s still in Dracula’s thrall, but what they experienced was almost more Zombie than Vamp. 

Compare this to Johnathon’s experience. He was welcomed as Dracula’s guest. Dracula had passions, goals, relationships (with the brides and his attempted relationship with Johnathon). Johnathon had the opposite experience instead of something changing into a monster, a human was revealed to be a monster all along. Johnathon knows that there is intelligence and will and personality in a vampire. Knows from Drac’s own stories that he was a conqueror when alive, and is now one dead. Dracula was twisted from what he was, but he was still himself and still had identifiable humanity in the way he teased and pretended and memorized time tables for trains (like Mina). 

So when he sees Mina start to turn, his understanding of vampires is inherently different than the suitors. They saw nothing of Lucy in what she had become, but Johnathon saw hints of what he had been in Dracula. With that hint, came the knowledge that a sliver of the woman that he loved, that he had sworn never to part from (an actual marital vow) would still be within whatever she became. And that was worth any hell to be by her side. 

(Actually, Mina is the one with the least interaction with actual vampires, which makes her own refusal to be turned interesting, because it is tinged with the fear of the unknown. I hate any description that she’s acting full on “martyr for love. Rage drips against Dracula, about what he did to the people she’s loved most, the shame of Drac doing it in such a sensual manner when she’s married, when school teachers were charged with teaching children to fear god and now God can’t help her against her will, (poor take on the Christian god, but that’s horror for you) like there are plenty of ideological reasons she would beg people to kill her before that happened. She’s clearly more like Lucy than dracula in this scenario.)

[nicoleanell]

By POPULAR DEMAND (a couple of people said "hey Nicole I care about your Renfield 2023 meta")

Ever since I made this gif set of something that's grown to be one of my favorite moments in the movie, I was a little wary of responses to it? Not just whether the source or my highlighting of it would be interpreted as victim-blamey, but that some might actually use it as a jumping-off point to say something more insensitive and victim-blamey themselves in the comments/tags. (Which thankfully hasn't happened! But the first thing is a take I've seen from a couple of people.)

Now, I feel pretty strongly like "victim-blaming" or being anything but 100% on the side of the abused is the LAST thing Renfield (2023) is trying to do, considering [GESTURES AT THE ENTIRE MOVIE]. But I do think it needs to be unpacked a little bit.

This idea of having partially gotten yourself into a situation and that means you can get out and get better… that's not going to relate to EVERYONE'S experience. (Certainly not, for example, a person whose abuse started in childhood.) It's not a universal truth and I don't think it's meant to be. See that tumblr post going around about how fiction that's harmful (or just lightly off-putting) for some people can be healing for others, and vice versa.

But for this character it IS really important that he's not a perfect innocent victim but not an irredeemably bad person either. And it's also important that any Redemption he's capable of is not through shame and punishment, something he's had quite enough of already, but being alive and happy as the person he wants to be.

They have him acknowledge before the end of the movie - in a way that is framed as correct and honest - that he bears responsibility for where he ended up, on a very literal in-canon level. Although Dracula is manipulative and he's implied to have some degree of hypnotic power to influence/charm people, what did not happen (contrary to some versions of the story) was Renfield having his sanity and/or free will magicked away entirely. He made CHOICES. He continued making them!

But… there's something about the fact that he gets to own that without hating himself. He has to own it without hating himself. A not insignificant thing for him is to be able to say that he made mistakes and bad choices, and he takes responsibility for that, but that doesn't mean he deserves to suffer for those choices forever. He's allowed to move forward and be happy.

It's such a huge and weirdly nuanced take for this movie's version of Renfield to be fully accountable for his actions AND extremely sympathetic AND go basically unpunished.

Relatedly, I love the fact they acknowledge shame as a motivating influence on him, which is so fucking dark and sad and complicated coming from this movie?!?!?! A lot of people took that line to be specifically a queerness/attraction thing, and I think that's there and valid. But I also just took it to be like over time the primary way Drac manipulated him was through his shame over what he'd done & become.

Which is such a heartbreaking thing to throw in there, because everything else on that list (dreams etc) is a positive reinforcement -- the devil on your shoulder appealing to the things you want -- but then it crashes into this understanding that he didn't want to want some of those things, and that was also a button to push. There is something equally powerful to Dracula knowing what shames him and the exact ways he hates himself, maybe to take it away, maybe to just keep pressing it until he agrees he's worthless and deserves to suffer. That is MOST of the dynamic we actually see between them in the timeline of the movie, regardless of what their earlier relationship was like.

So the answer to that is not to say he's totally good and has done nothing shame-worthy, but it's also not to say he should be more ashamed actually, it's just… knowing all this and still believing he deserves to be alive and free.

IRL it's not uncommon for there to be a self-blaming factor within abusive relationships and some guilt and shame that goes along with that. It's not always incorrect to realize like: some of this was in my control, I gave a lot of power to this person willingly. I emotionally relied on them, I let my identity get wrapped up in them, I should've known better or stood up for myself or put up stronger boundaries earlier, and the fact I didn't just reinforced how hopeless I felt. It hits the same way for anybody struggling with addictive or self-destructive behavior. The flip side of all that can be understanding and forgiving that version of yourself and reclaiming that power rather than feeling ashamed and trapped by it.

And again! That's not necessarily the story or mindset that resonates with everyone, and it could be perceived badly if one feels it's speaking for all survivors. But if it resonates, it really does.

Last note: The movie also says very firmly that it is NOT as easy for everyone as simply "loving yourself, standing up for yourself, accepting responsibility etc." Like, I actualy think they made a pretty loud point that when your abuser is violent and vengeful and threatning to hurt you and others, you actually fucking CAN'T get out so easily and the self-help affirmations are kinda bullshit. HE NEEDED ALLIES AND SUPPORT IN A VERY REAL AND TANGIBLE WAY. Without Rebecca and also Tumblr he would've been fucked several times over. :) But the bullshit affirmations were still something that mattered to him emotionally, and something he drew strength from, to even get the belief it could get better into his own head.

[blood-injections]

Found a genius au lost in my notes app okay so get this.

Kobra Kid gets ghosted. Or so everyone thinks. The rest of the Fab Four assume he’s dead because at the scene that’s found, Kobra’s bike is totaled and there’s a ton of blood and they couldn’t find a body, so they come to the conclusion that bli must’ve taken the body or dumped it somewhere and the idea is confirmed as months pass and there’s no sign of a surviving Kobra and no intel from rebels in the city of imprisoned killjoys.

But Kobra wakes up in Battery City, he’s interrogated for information, tortured and drugged, and he loses his memories. But he doesn’t fall under their control, even as they try to make him a soldier, try to get in his mind, it doesn’t work. He knows he hates them and he manages to escape before they take control of him. But his memories are gone, whether because of the mix of physical and emotional trauma or a little too many shocks he doesn’t know, he just knows that Better Living is his enemy. And he has instincts still, combat skills he doesn’t remember learning but that let him escape with his life. He has some flashes of memory after a while, but not enough to piece together who he is.

So he has no clue who he is and he’s stuck in the city and full of rage, so he starts sneaking around and killing every drac or scarecrow he comes across. He becomes obsessed with the idea of revenge for his lost past, of destroying bli from the inside out once he’s seen the state the city is in, the pristine skyscrapers miles from the starving slums, the droids rusting on street corners but still alive, still waiting for a savior that doesn’t exist. He gets his hands on some better weapons and soon there’s whispers of an assassin in battery city.

He survives for months, taking out dracs and even some higher ups, his plan is to work his way up the chain, take out the director herself. But the job is proving more difficult the closer he gets, he’s getting more hurt more often and has a few narrow escapes. Meanwhile his memories have been slowly returning, he knows he was a killjoy, that he had a brother, even that his name is Kobra Kid. He knows a little of his true identity but still can’t really remember other than a few scattered moments of his life, most of them being from when he was younger, he still doesn’t know where he was before he was stuck with bli, he hasn’t left the city because he still doesn’t know where he’d go back to. Besides, he’s actually made a bit of a change with the people he’s taken out, better living is on edge for once and he can still do more because they’ve yet to track him down. He’s been called the viper because of how quickly he strikes and how deadly he is and it’s quite ironic that he was called that before he even remembered that his name was Kobra.

Then he meets a dealer claiming to have pills that are supposed to help with memory loss, something that he’s been looking for but that are rare to come by. The dealer is shady and wants a lot for them but he says they’re straight from the factory and untampered with so Kobra takes the risk, desperate to know more about himself. It takes a couple weeks for them to seemingly start working, for his little flashbacks to start happening more often, to even start remembering whole chunks of his past in his dreams at night. He can actually recall stuff now and the process becomes less sifting through his life one flashback at a time and more like it’s information just coming back to him without him even noticing half the time, it just settles back into its natural place in his mind like it always should have been.

After a couple months, he remembers everything, knows he has to get back to the zones because it’s been almost two years now. He wants to keep going, find the director, but he wants to go home more, let his family know he isn’t dead like they probably think. He’s changed a lot during his time in the city, he’s stronger in some ways, but he has a lot more blood on his hands. Bli blood, so he doesn’t really care, but they’ve bled him too. Injuries he’s sustained means he’s different in some respects, maybe he has a cybernetic part or two. He has scars, some from captivity some from his many fights, many physical but even more unseen. He knows he’s more dangerous, he’s less scared of losing future fights, but he’s terrified of his missing time, fears what he may have missed while he’s been in the city, because what if he gets back home and in the two years he’s been gone his friends have been ghosted, what if he returns home to an empty diner collecting dust?

It isn’t hard to get out now that he finally knows where he’s going, he stealthily takes out a few ‘crows and steals a motorcycle, then he pushes his fears from his mind, focuses on hope as he rides out to the diner to reunite with his crew after being dead and gone for nearly two years.

[rosetyler42]

Not proud of how Drac looks in these, they're pretty old and I was still trying to figure out how to draw him (again) So excuse the bad/in poor taste nose shape.

These were based on some WIR-Verse RP things between me, @lovelylivelyv and another friend of mine.

In the first, Drac tries to talk down Ericka from killing Shrek's Fairy Godmother in a protective rage for her attacking Norman Babcock and insulting Alice for her relationship with Bendy and their son, Jack. Ericka wants to go rip the fairy a new one for saying Angel's and devils can't live happily ever after, but while Drac would LOVE to let her tear the old woman apart....this fairy's powerful, and if Ericka dies outside their game, she won't come back. Ever. And he can't bring himself to risk losing ANOTHER Zing. Not again.

The second is after the Cronies, the Hotel Transylvania 2 update villains, turned traitor on the game and tried to destroy it. They managed to drive them off, but Drac's still upset about the attack on his beloved home. Ericka tries to cheer him up....and maybe FINALLY get permission to go after the villains themselves.

Basically, Drac is the pragmatic sensible braincell between him and Ericka, while Ericka's the emotional hot-head ex-huntress going "Aren't you tired of being nice? Don't you just want go go batpoop!?" Struggling with not solving her problems by violence. He deals with things by hiding, isolating, doing what needs to be done to keep his family safe - very much a flight or freeze response; but Ericka's instinct tends to be fight. They're very much that angry/chaotic energy and Serious/No energy meme with him holding her leash. XD Of course, sometimes it's the other way around where Ericka has to be the reasonable one but...alot of times it's this. XD And I LIVE for it.

Honestly, I love how this contrasts with @black-ak9 's Drartha where Drac was the fighty one. XD How the tables have turned...

@hotelt-resurrection @ssleeping-in-a-coffin @serial-serializednovelreader @deathfangirl9 @twinklecupcake @ebevkisk @wingingfromthezing

[beevean]

Dracula in the games

https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/castlevania/images/3/30/CoD_Dracula.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20230709013849

https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/castlevania/images/6/68/Artbook15.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20081116072626

Dracula in the show

https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/castlevania/images/3/3e/DeLWBtXV4AEg_Nu.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20180815144137

https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/castlevania/images/1/1b/Tumblr_p1ylqlubSD1rs9hhio1_1280.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20180801035105

They drained him of all his otherworldly charm 💔

Alright, so

Dracula is one of the best redesigns in the show IMO, nowhere near the atrocities that are Alucard and Isaac, and to be very honest I really dig the black hair for a younger Drac. I think he looks great with it, it matches the largely black attire, and I can headcanon that it went white either out of grief or after the botched resurrection in CoD. But that still doesn't make this design great.

First thing first: why is he small.

How dare you come into my house and put my giant DILF in the washing machine.

He is not just a tall man! He is a monster! He's big and intimidating and he's supposed to make you feel small and powerless!

But alright, fine, animation simplification. His clothes are... eh? I don't understand what they were going for. What is that vest? Is that a militaristic look? Because he doesn't look like a noble (SoTN) nor like a sorcerer (CV3/CoD). I guess it makes sense, since N!Dracula was introduced as being nothing more than a rabid hermit... but man, what a disservice.

Then there is, of course, his general personality. Usually you give a cloak to make a character stand wider, make them look more dignified or, again, intimidating. Look at that shot of Dracula in OoE, how the cloak makes him look even bigger.

But since in S2 he's a poor depressed old man, in the show he keeps the cloak closed off to his body. He, somehow, manages to look smaller. Again, it fits the character they were going for, but why.

bruh. why is the lord of all vampires making a :( face.

And that, overall, contributes to him losing all possible charisma, while poor Graham McTavish has to work double duty to give any sort to credibility to the character.

And then there's that scene where he out of nowhere becomes horny.

ohhhhh i'm so turned on look how cool and hot he looks during this flashback that takes place as he in the present he's feeling sorry for himself, but who caaaaares he's getting a boner for all the killing he's doinggggg

in the meantime

daddy? sorry, daddy? sorry, daddy? sorry, daddy? sorry,

^ this is why Isaac is just like me fr fr lol

anyway i reject your failed tragic villain that is just a giant careless idiot with terrible drip and a thousand Toccata Into Blood-Soaked Darkness upon you

[chibishortdeath]

I actually really like the messed up skeleton Dracula design, it conveys that he’s not at full power yet pretty well :3. More explanations and two unfinished doodles under a cut—

Close up on Drac’s upper half cause the drawing was way too big for one photo of it. Something that I noticed while staring at his sprite for a while is that he’s probably not wearing a hood, but chainmail armor with a helmet on top :O!

Entire page view to get all the Dracula in frame lol. His armor isn’t falling off btw, everything is rising into place from the altar. Hopefully he’s not too gorey for general tags uhhh yeah d(TwT ).

This is him when he’s done coming together. He’s still not fully powerful or physically all there yet, but it’s just enough to be able to troll Simon at the end 💀💀💀. Anyway yeah he’s totally me when my arch nemesis doesn’t find my teeth and accidentally summons me before I’m ready lol.

Simon is literally so fun to just put in poses. He is almost always my model for drawing poses because his big thighs kinda force you to make his pose even more exaggerated to get the same amount of open space and ratio of things— yeah idk it’s fun. He’s also allowed to have some sass sometimes I think. Fun fact! I didn’t use a reference for these :3. I’m so proud! Angles like this are usually hard!!! Oh and rare family heirloom sword moment. I’m taking this as a nod to the recent Haunted Castle remake now, which was so out of no where like (*o* ). I’ll take it!!! Simon game!!! A win!!! Hopefully the next collection they put out has Adventure Rebirth in it X3.

Simon but he is staring at you with the saddest pouty wet cat eyes. Tbh I think this general kinda neutral/resting sad expression is what I draw him with the most.

Which is why I also tried drawing him with other expressions!!!!!! In this one he is surprised and awkwardly responding to being told something so negative it’s almost comedic 💀💀💀. I was imagining the one town in Simon’s Quest with some bangers like “after Castlevania I told you never to return” and “you’ve upset the people now get out of town” X,,,,,D. He’s a little taken aback and was gonna try to defend himself, but he just leaves anxiously.

Please imagine that in this one he is saying that one meme that goes “it is hot as hell in this fucking ass hot ass room I’m in… IS THAT THE GRIM REAPER⁉️⁉️⁉️”.

Yay! Putting him on furniture for background practice!!! He is sitting on a church pew, having a couple micro sleeps cause he’s sleep deprived. He may fall off cause that armor is a little too heavy when sitting down I’d imagine.

These last two are for the images below. First one is just him kinda tweakin idk, he’s been awake too long and seen too much, somebody direct him to the nearest church, bro needs rest 💀. His hand shaking reminds me tho, a couple days ago I played the jojo fighting game so hard I had to put ice on my hand 💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀. It SUUUCKED like take it from me don’t play as Polnareff in story mode if you’ve already been playing for a long time ｡ﾟ(ﾟ´ω`ﾟ)ﾟ｡

This one is just general anatomy practice, just doodling his proportions to keep the skill of being able to draw them d(^^ ). I ended up really liking how I drew his hair in this one though, it’s cute :3.

[alpaca-clouds]

Hector and Trauma

You know what. I wanna talk about Hector from Castlevania, specifically the Netflix version of the character. (Again: I hate CoD Hector, who just replaces his dead girlfriend for her fucking clone. That's just fucking low.)

As people might've noticed... I am kinda obsessing about this man right now. And the main reason is that... I really do identify with him in a way I have not identified with a fictional character before. I read him as autistic (though I am not sure whether he was supposed to be read that way or just happens to be written in a way that every single autistic person I know reads him so...) and I very much identify with the C-PTSD that he clearly has.

We do not know much about his childhood, other than "lonely kid revives animals to have friends" and "abusive parents". We do not know how far the abuse went, so whether it was just verbal abuse (which we know about) or went into physical abuse. All we know is that at some point he could no longer take it and killed his parents by setting the house on fire and locking them inside. We don't know, how old he was after this and what exactly he did after that. Only that in his early 20s he is somewhere on Rhodes with his undead animals, has already met Dracula once and then agrees to "cull" humans and then creates night creatures for Drac.

Again, there is little information for what has happened in the time in between. But we get enough information to understand that he has been at least somewhat mistreated by other humans, making him wish for humans to be somewhat culled.

Here my interpretation of him being autistic comes in, too. Because... an autistic child with an abusive home will completely lack social skills and hence will probably meet with a lot of abuse from other people. Because he would not know how to act around them.

Something we do see: He kinda seems to understand that Dracula is doing a genocide and not just a cull. But he very willingly ignores it or keeps himself soothed by thinking that he is just misunderstanding it until Carmilla comes in.

Now, Carmilla makes it clear that Dracula lied to him. But she obviously also betrays him and then abuses him. Something that is kinda ignored: During the march to Styria he is constantly abused. He has fresh bruises, when he arrives at Styria, making it rather clear, that he got beaten up constantly during the long march there. So: Say hello to even more trauma.

Along comes Lenore, her original violence against him and then obviously her betrayel. And let me make one thing clear: What she does to him in the finale of season 3 is sexual assault. Maybe not in the legal sense, but speaking of a psychological effect, it clearly is SA.

Obviously at that point we do have season 4. Where he seems kinda... fine. Like, what we see is, that he presents as fine. He is joking with Lenore. He is making his escape plan. He appears to be okay. Which is a state that seems to continue till the end of the show. Heck, we see him smile as Lenore dies........

And that should be a hint on how not-okay he is.

Let me talk about child abuse first. See, here is the thing: Children do not only develop physically, but also psychological and neurological. In that, they need to learn certain things at certain points in time. One of the first things children are supposed to learn, is to trust and mistrust. But for that they need a stable surrounding in which they can trust that they are cared for. Which children, who get abused or neglected, usually do not have. Especially with the dialogue we have from his mother: "I knew you were wrong from the moment you came out of me." (Note: This is another reason I read him as autistic, because at times autism shows even at infant age and without the information it might lead to parents not quite bonding with the child.)

They also need to learn some basic autonomy early on and to deal with self-doubt and shame. Which again abused children, who do not get encouraged to develop autonomy in a healthy environment and often might get shamed cannot develop.

Some other things they need to learn is how to deal with guilt, how to understand consequences, how to develop an identity and also what role they have in society. All things that children, who are abused, cannot properly learn. Additionally here, because Hector clearly has not found his own place in the society he lived in.

And this is something we actually do see in the show. He is absolutely unable to understand whom to trust or to see any red flags. He also is so clearly longing to be loved and praised by someone. Which is why he falls for Dracula and Carmilla and then Lenore. Heck, good chance that his understanding with Varney went something like that.

He is obviously not aware of this, but he is very much compensating for what was not given to him.

There are several characters over the entire story, that note how he has the mind of a child. And part of that is just, that he has childhood trauma and developmental delays because of it. And this delay is used again and again against him.

Something that is very noticable in the show is, that Hector never once cries. No matter how much he is abused and betrayed, he does not cry outside of the flashbacks where he is a kid. Now, in any other show it would not be that noticable, because we rarely do not see men cry in media........ but Castlevania is different here. Castlevania has no qualms letting the men cry.

Now, IRL it is obviously that a lot of men got taught not to cry. Because our society has the entire "boys don't cry" thing going on. BUT... I kinda doubt that is what is going on here.

See, one thing that happens in some cases, when people have amassed too much trauma, is, that they loose the ability for appropriate emotional responses to things happening to them. Mostly because the brain cannot process the emotion normally any longer.

Which is also why I think he is smiling in that last scene. Because... I mean, let's face it. The Lenore death thing has to be fucking traumatizing too. But he just... doesn't quite have the ability to process it in any proper way.

Now, how much of this is intended reading?

Honestly, I do have no idea. But at some points his behavior does make a lot of sense from the CPTSD point of view - and it is even called out by other character. Which kinda makes me think that at least some of it was intended.

Either way: I am rather thinking the man has a lot of healing to do post-canon. Because he not only has to heal from the stuff that happens to him in the series, but also the entire childhood trauma, that so very clearly is not addressed.

And if he addresses that trauma, there will also be a point in which he has to face his guilt. Because that is very much another thing he has not yet done.

Anyways. I adore him. And I want him to be alright. Q-Q