Hey folks, I'm back from the dead. I'm still quite busy with life and work but things have certainly calmed down a bit since January so I've been able to squeeze in a bit more time to do other stuff.
Disclaimer: I don't own Castlevania or its characters.
She placed the flower crown on his head. "There, just like a prince," she sighed and took a step back. She put her hands on her hips and nodded, looking quite satisfied with her work.
Gingerly, he reached up and brushed his fingers along the top of his new floral accessory.
"Hmm, you think so?"
She giggled and sat down beside him, "Of course!"
He gave her a small smile.
Her eyes lit up when she saw his face, "Ah, a smile at last!"
He looked up at the clouds, finding quite an interest in their fluffiness and their odd forms. Without turning to look at the girl beside him, he asked softly, "You did not believe I could smile?"
The girl looked down at the dandelions growing around them and plucked a puffy seed head out. She twirled it around in her small fingers and answered, "It's just...your eyes are very sad."
She blew at the puffy white dandelion seed head and the breeze dispersed the seeds into the grassy field below the short hill they sat on.
He did not know what to say, so he closed his eyes instead, enjoying the warm sunlight and the spring breeze. She looked over to him and patted his hand with her own. This small gesture made him turn, a bit confused. He was not used to such warmth. Not in centuries.
"It's alright, though. It's okay to feel sad..." she said softly.
She moved her hand away slowly and hugged her knees.
"I feel sad sometimes too…"
No romance in this specific oneshot. The Maria in this is much younger so it's friendship. It's a scenario in which Alucard meets her younger self. Perhaps inspired by Grimoire of Souls a bit.
My plan is to write a series of short fics involving Alucard and sometimes other characters as well. They'll certainly be all game related/inspired but probably won't always be completely accurate to the lore or make total sense. It has been a while since I touched a Castlevania game, so I'm rusty on the lore (I will try to replay a few of the games soon! I have this urge to play Aria of Sorrow again).
By now I think some of you know I am quite fond of the Alucard/Maria pairing and that it will certainly sometimes be the focus of a few fics here and there. If that's not your cup of tea, that's okay. We all have different opinions and preferences.
(Btw, I've always just called the fluffy white dandelion balls just 'dandelions' and I had to search up what they were really called. I think it was either seed heads or blowballs, so I went with seed heads. I'm not a botanist so I might still be wrong!).