Let the Symphony last for Eternity

Written By: Lady Lunar Phoenix

A/N: ...So a woodcutter, a pirate, and the prince of Vampires walk into a Church...

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"Where are we?"

"I believe this is the Royal Chapel."

"'Royal Chapel'?"

"Yes."

"In the Castle of Dracula, Lord of Darkness and all things Evil."

"...Yes..."

"A royal 'Chapel'."

"I believe I just confirmed that."

"What evil vampire lord, puts a chapel to GOD in their Castle?! That's the question!"

"No, the question was merely the words, 'Royal Chapel' repeated into inanity."

"So what? He just sticks a whole section to God in this place pretty as he pleases? This isn't how you do 'evil'!"

"It was for my mother, she was very devote in her lifetime!"

"I mean no disrespect to the dead. BUT SHE IS! WHY IS THERE A CHAPEL IN THE CASTLE?!

"Why is there a pirate this far inland?"

"Hey Leon, have I introduced you to my friends?"

"I just don't even know..." Leon muttered as he watched as this mounting argument began to fester in the group. It was uproariously hilarious and he was worried that any form of amusement would be taken poorly. Despite the fact that... well that just happened. He understood that Trevor and Grant, like himself, was from further points in the past than where they were. That Alucard had lived through all of this and yet they seemed to have acted like they had never been separated.

For good or for ill.

The aforementioned Royal Chapel was an airy large room, done in mostly shades of blue, silver and white. It was brightly lit and completely different than any other part of the Castle that Leon had been in by that point. There was very soft organ music that could 'almost' be considered religious if not for the sinister undercurrent of each song. The stairwell up to this area had knights placed about, knights that had been willing to converse with either Alucard or Leon. Though there was a sense of resistance to the inquiry and a reminder for Alucard to go see his father.

Alucards' father, Mathais, or Dracula, or just for fun, Soma.

They had traveled from the underground, back to the floor that Leon had encountered Jonathan, and were now ascending higher in the Castle, again. The whole time spent with them recounting their own journeys through the Castle and the people they came across. And apparently Leon won the award for meeting the most people in his travels.

While learning that there was a reincarnated version of Mathias at one time roaming around the Castle had been interesting. Elizabetha having been reborn and now Mathias? He wasn't sure how he was going to handle things if they got time back in its right order. It would mean encountering this 'Soma' person after all, and he still had issues with the man. The way Trevor had described the man with the style of clothes and behavior. Well it fit with Leon's childhood recollections of Mathias's personality.

Which compounded the fact that he was now traveling with Mathias and Elizabetha's 'son'. He really didn't know what to do with the presence of Alucard, Leon really wanted to talk to Trevor. The fact that he apparently allowed for Alucard to fight and take part in slaying his own father. If Alucard hadn't been with them, or lacked the heighten vampiric senses, Leon would have proceeded with a small dressing down for that act.

Leon could see the Dhampires' parents influence in Alucard, from the manners and giving nature of his mother. As well as the emotional issues of his father from when he made the mistake of mentioning Elizabetha's ghost in the Castle. Apparently its insinuation that his mother was in the Castle as ghost unseen by the living had a negative effect on the Dhamprie. The Vampire Princes' upbringing was probably the only thing that kept things from escalating into a fight.

Leon managed to settle Alucard down quickly enough, and perhaps because he knew Mathias beyond just the identity of 'Dracula' that Alucard was more prone to listen. But in that brief time he had come to understand a bit more about the Castle and its tendencies to attract the souls of the dead. After all, if the Castle could or did pull in the souls of the dead, why only 'now' did Lady Elizabetha finally decide to appear? It was clear to Leon that she was pretty limited in her ability to manifest, the Castle sending her away when ever danger approached her.

But again, if she 'could' appear, why had she not made her presence known? It was the type of betrayal that didn't fit with her character and it left questions all over the place. Though it was reasonable to consider that because it had been 'Soma' in the Castle and not Dracula, she had been allowed to manifest. Perhaps she could only be seen by some force or power that Soma was exclusively privy to.

It had left Alucard royally despondent and it was, in fact, Grants' seemingly inane questioning, that finally dragged Alucard from what ever self induced emotional exile he had begun to enter. In truth Leon could not find fault in any of this, they appeared a grand group of friends. It was enough to make him actually 'miss' his friendship with Mathias. But he just had to remind himself that Mathias brought about the death of Sara and his anger was rekindled.

And they had learned that Alucard had large chunks of memory that were purely absent, and suspiciously, the majority of them involved direct interaction with his father. Somehow Soma had created a mystery that, unfortunately, couldn't be solved without the man's presence. All they had left to go on was the Claymore that Alucard was bout ready to fight to keep.

So now as they reached yet another door, Trevor began to hope that they would find his wife and others soon. But his heart was starting to dim at that prospect. The Castle was clearly huge, but given Leon's recollection there had been many hunters before. And all of them had disappeared from his sight, most undoubtedly gone, while one was literally brought over to the side of the Vampires. So who was left?

There was a blessing to be found in coming across Leon certainly, but these long spells of no one around was wearing down on the man. It wasn't like his first hunt where aid was an unexpected blessing, he 'knew' there had been others and now. Now so many were gone, just wiped away from an uncaring timeline.

"Stop staring, if you will not tender aid, then go away!" Sophia shouted up at a pair of uncaring skeletons that were looking at her. She gave a huff before she began jumping again, attempting to reach the higher platform with her small, rather pathetic hops. Even if her robes weren't weighing her down, the power in those hops just insufficient to do anything. Save bounce just enough to hint at her rear end and show off her feet and ankles.

"... are you seriously going to... is she not your lady wife? Do you have any moral decency?" Leon finally asked in a dead flat tone of voice. "How is it that you can stand there and stare at her like a rack of meat? And you, Sir Grant, is she not both your friend and your friends' wife?" As both called out men lowered their heads at the chastising Leon called out, "Lady Sophia I seem to have found your husband and friends."

Sophia stopped jumping and turned quickly about to see the quartet in the entryway of the room. Excited that 'finally' she had found people she knew and trusted she hurried her way forward as Trevor stepped forward to meet up with her, with Grant moving as though to follow Trevor only to pause after a few steps.

Leon's expression shifted to a mildly quizzical one, and he looked over at Alucard for insight. The Dhampire giving him a slight shake of the head in a slight negative fashion, making Leon ponder if perhaps Grant was the unselected suitor. Either way it wasn't his place to judge relationships, indeed Sophia had spoken of Grant only as a friend.

Leon murmured, "well at least two of us were blessed with a proper upbringing."

"Thank the Lord and all the Saints," Alucard replied as the two finally followed up on the pair to meet with Sophia.

Though Leon noted the skeletons above and saw that they were moving back as though returning to their stations. So apparently the Dark Children, and monsters, had a sense of humor as well, and one not so dark in fact. When his eyes lowered back to the ground level he found Trevor and Grant escorting Sophia to them.

"I've been informed that you've met my clan's founder, and we found Alucard in the Castle as well." Trevor noted casually to his wife as they walked back to the two nobles in the group.

Sophia barely contained her shock at what he said, as she had just assumed Leon to be a more noble member of the immediate clan. Not the actual 'founder' of said clan and suddenly her callous treatment towards the man became more upsetting. Where 'were' her manners?

"I suppose we are dismissing the false identity?" Alucard inquired as he merely lowered his gaze to look at Sophia. After all, she had introduced 'himself' as 'Cypher' once, and her hostility towards his half Vampire blood had been palpable.

"Yes, at this point there is nothing for myself to fear given the fall of Dracula... Though I do confess things have gotten..." And with that she raised a hand and faintly made an sweep of the area as though to say 'this is odd'.

"Yes, it seems that one of my descendants has disappeared before he fathered the next in the family line. Because of that time itself has been distorted and we have to find and rescue that Belmont," Trevor explained with a heavy sigh. The only bright side of not running into anyone else was that he didn't have to go about explaining this over and over.

"Ah... I see, so that explains that weird sensation that washed over me earlier," Sophia commented thoughtfully as she remembered her trek through out the Castle. "And so far you've only found each other?"

"Shall I begin? Seeing that Leon took lead last?" Grant casually inquired.

"Yes, both Leon and Alucard have recounted their own travels through the Castle," Trevor added with a faint nod.

"Well given I have been deprived human companionship since Sir Leon and I were separated since the doors split us, it would only be fair." Sophia agreed as she really preferred to have company than be alone. "Though how exactly are we to ascend higher in this area? The door behind me leads only to a confessional room and nothing more. Which was why I was trying to go up the platforms," Sophia pointed out before tilting her head in a slight gesture towards the platforms.

"Don't worry over that Sophia, the three of us have that covered," Grant spoke up as he approached a wall and prepared to climb up.

Leon walked forward and took a seemingly casual double jump that got him on a platform and began his own investigation.

"Please excuse me, I'm going to make some inquiries with the skeletons, see if they have any information they are willing to part with," Leon informed the lower group before the soft click of his boots sounded as he ascended the steps.

"So he's a former knight, I see where you get your acceptance of others from, even if he's generations removed," Sophia murmured to Trevor.

"His manners make me feel like some type of barbarian," Trevor retorted with a good natured snort as he shook his head.

"As well you should," Alucard countered as he walked forward to study the platform. Before he also performed a double jump his long cloak turning into smokey, ebony, black wings. They beat rapidly allowing him to ascend higher into the air and get onto the platform before them.

"Alucard has changed..." Sophia automatically asked, turning to face her husband with a perplexed expression on her face.

"Yes, apparently he used magics to hide his true appearance when we first met and traveled with him. Also please keep your voice down dear, his senses have been heighten and its rude to speak to the man behind his back." Trevor explained as he lowered his voice to what could be considered ridiculously low.

"Why are you lowering your voice? He's a monster he should expect to be treated as-," Sophia began only to have Trevor grab her by the shoulder with a firm grip.

"Stay your words Sophia. I do not want to give Leon a reason to think less of us in any way, and he will not tolerate slander among allies," Trevor warned.

She blinked in surprise then slowly nodded recalling her first encounter with the man. "This will be hard..."

"Just soften your heart," Trevor suggested before stepping back a bit and letting his voice return to a normal tone. "Time has been terribly damaged, one of our descendants has been removed from time and caused a great deal of trouble for the future. We've been traveling the whole of the Castle instead of heading straight into battle in an effort to see if we could find others. Hoping that there would be more Hunters to lend us aid, however; Leon has pretty much confirmed there may be no one else."

"Oh, is that what I sensed... Has the damage been great?" She asked only to shake her head, "no, better to wait until we are all together. I'm sure I'll find the answer when Grant tells his tale."

"From the time you sensed the change, have you seen anyone else? Even if it was at a distance and you were unable to reach them in time?" Trevor asked, his voice calm and confident despite his mounting concern for his kin.

"No. I fear not, but how much more of the castle is there to explore?" Sophia asked facing her husband as a soft distant sound of foot steps touched her ears.

"Not much now, we've traveled through the library and the underground mines. Between the four of us we have begun to enter areas we had already been in again." Trevor recounted as Leon and Grant both dropped down to rejoin the group.

"Its no good to go this way," Grant announced shaking his head before looking up at Leon who shared his feelings with a nod. "At least not if you are adverse to being carried up."

"Indeed, those of us who can leap or climb will have no difficulty in ascending to the next hall, but for the two of you," Alucard added as he also rejoined them.

Which raised a quandary for Sophia as she realized the only one who could reasonably 'carry her' was Alucard. As Leons' ability made the trip 'up' more awkward for her, and Alucard was not human and she did not want to be 'that' close to him. But what other recourse did they have? It was irrational to insist on finding another way up to the Master Chambers, so despite her disdain...

"The slow climb?" Grant asked as the pair walked closer to the lower platform.

"What other choice do we have? The sooner we find this one missing Belmont the sooner we can return time to its proper place." Trevor pointed out with a rueful shrug, when Grant nodded and began ascending the wall again.

"I'll throw ye a rope," Grant called out as he climbed up the wall.

Sophia fussed her robes into place so she was neither blinding nor creating wind drag for Alucard. Thus she was able to rest in his arms as he picked her up and proceed with the jump and finally, after all her pitiful attempts. She was on the platform that had taunted her, Sophia really hated the limitations of her physical abilities at times.

She was carried to the upper part of the room, left to stand on a platform while Alucard went to hold the rope used for Trevor to climb. Because why not apparently, if you're strong enough to easily bear the weight of a human...

Apparently...

When did Alucard get so 'strong'? It wasn't just the deathly paleness of his skin, he was never 'this' strong when they first encountered him.