Adrian watched Trevor interact with his mother while trying not to obviously stare. When he'd discovered the pair sharing a camp, he'd immediately become suspicious. His instincts told him that the young man, like himself, kept a dark secret. It would only be a matter of time before he revealed himself to be more than appearances would suggest.

The animosity between the pair had been what drove him to attack in his more animalistic form, only for his mother to throw boiling water on him. He'd planned on spending more days watching them when the bounty hunters had attacked. They'd dropped the knowledge of the youth's last name and suddenly everything fell into place.

Belmont.

His mother, human wife of the most feared vampire in Wallachia, if not the world, had bonded to a young monster hunter. The irony had held him at bay during the bounty hunter attack, until he saw his mother's desperation when Trevor had been overpowered. Whatever had happened to drive his mother away from her clinic, he knew it had to do with this half grown man-child.

When he'd finally revealed himself, his mother's relief had actually frightened him. The times he'd returned from his travels, his presence had never brought her to tears. Growing up, he'd thought she was the strongest person he knew. She had to be to put up with his father's eccentricities. Seeing her with Trevor showed a more vulnerable side that made him begrudgingly relate to the hunter. They both clearly cared about his mother's well being.

Then there was Trevor himself. He did his best to maintain his distance, only for Lisa to pull him back every night. When Trevor tried to remain detached, Lisa did her best to ease his fears. Adrian's arrival had unfortunately put an awkward damper on the atmosphere between them.

So, Adrian quickly settled in helping with whatever his mother asked. It led to where they were now, with him braiding long ropes of sack cloth to apparently be used in tandem with whatever the Belmont boy was doing with long straps of leather. Once Trevor had mocked up... something on the ground, he began adding buckles and stitches with a bone awl.

Adrian noticed his mother rub her eyes in fatigue and stifle yet another yawn. In truth, the hour had grown late and he knew for a fact that she'd been up half the previous night. He stretched and suggested, "Why don't you head to bed, mother?"

Her head rolled onto her shoulder and she moped, "That wouldn't be fair to either of you."

Trevor's brow had knit together and he squinted in concentration. "Go to sleep, doctor. We'll be following you as soon as this is finished."

Adrian raised an eyebrow at that statement. Did the Belmont actually plan to sleep after everything he'd been doing on his little night ventures? Then again, his injuries had thoroughly incapacitated him. Or was it all a bluff, a reassurance to convince her to sleep?

He waited for his mother's pulse to slow before asking, "What happened to your arm?"

Trevor gave him a skeptic, sidelong glance. "Animal attack. Luckily I got away mostly unscathed."

Adrian grabbed more cloth to add to the braid and corrected, "I was asking about your other arm. It seems like a recent scar."

Trevor responded with a suspicious glare. Taking the leather in his wrapped hand, he struggled to use the needle and sinew. "Like I said, animal attack, just... wasn't so lucky." His voice dropped to a whisper and he muttered spitefully, "Story of my life."

Adrian watched him wrestle unsuccessfully with the leather until he hissed a string of curses. Trevor's self inflicted stab wound from the awl released a drop of blood. He immediately put the injured finger into his mouth and murmured around it, "Son of a bitch."

Setting aside the cloth braids, Adrian sat beside Trevor and insisted, "Let me help." Ignoring the heavy scent of copper, he took the leather straps out of Belmont's lap and followed the stitch pattern. "How's your finger?"

Trevor tried to slump and cross his arms, failed miserably, and instead put his elbow on his knee with his chin in his palm. "I'll live."

"No need to feign enthusiasm on my behalf," Adrian joked, then asked in complete seriousness, "How do I end this?"

Trevor made a looping motion with his hand. "Through and out the side." He leaned to the fire and grabbed a glowing stick. "Hold it out." Adrian watched as the ember burnt and melted the sinew into the space between the straps. Smothering a yawn, he griped, "Four down, twenty more to go."

They'd worked in near silence for another hour, making quicker progress than Adrian had initially expected, when Trevor asked seemingly bored, "Any good with that sword?"

Adrian glanced sidelong down at the slumped youth and chose his words carefully. "I... have trained from a young age. My parents' living... circumstances allowed many freedoms."

Trevor hmmphed and said nothing more on the topic. Of course, living felt wrong in relation to his father, but that wasn't a distinction the hunter needed to know. Assuming he didn't? Suddenly perturbed, Adrian grew lightheaded at the thought that perhaps the Belmont actually knew the particulars around the Tepes family dynamic.

Then... no. He shoved the uncomfortable feelings out of mind. If this young man was actually of the Belmont line, Adrian couldn't imagine him going against his heritage as a monster hunter. Which logically meant Trevor had no idea what kind of blood ran through Adrian's veins.

His mother though... Did she know what kind of person she'd taken with? Had she managed to coerce Trevor along despite the company she kept? Would she hold Trevor back if he discovered who she had become romantically involved with?

"How did you find us?"

Adrian jolted and froze. "Pardon?"

Trevor remained slouched and stared indifferently into the distance beyond the firelight. "I mean, I've taken great care choosing the route we've travelled to avoid contact with passersby. I can count on one hand the amount of people we've seen." Adrian bit back a comment about the bandits yesterday numbering six and let Trevor continue. "Plus, we've also been traveling by horse and you wander up here on foot. So... either you stumbled upon us in the middle of the wilderness, having complete blind luck... or you-"

"I did have a horse," Adrian quickly lied. Trevor immediately looked over, that same skepticism from earlier plain as day. Adrian added, "It... died. I pushed it past its breaking point."

"You... rode it to death?"

"Yes," Adrian sighed and committed to the lie. "When I found my mother's clinic abandoned and in clear disarray, I panicked and had been planning to return to my family's estate. Then, I stopped in a village where they spoke of a woman who matched my mother's description and her young companion. The girls seemed especially taken with you."

Trevor snorted and Adrian took the change in tone as permission to continue with their sewing. He said while he stitched, "I heard you were some days ahead of me and was desperate to catch up before the trail went cold."

Trevor put the stick back in the fire to warm the coals and then singed the thread. "Well... for what it's worth, you don't stink of horse. My apologies for acting so belligerent."

Adrian raised an eyebrow again. Because he didn't reek of animal, the Belmont had been suspicious? That uncomfortable creep started up his spine again about sharing camp with someone who would kill him in his 'sleep' if he knew what he was. Then again, Trevor still seemed to only wish for Lisa's safety. For the third time that night, Adrian again considered whether revealing himself to his mother and her patient had been an intelligent risk.

Then, "How old are you, exactly?"

Adrian rolled his head back and stared at the stars with a sigh. "Are you always so curious?" Trevor made a noncommittal sound. Adrian glared over at Trevor, annoyance growing at his unwavering eye contact. "I'm twenty three." At least, that had been his mother's latest assessment.

Trevor let out a low whistle and glanced back at where Lisa slept. "Damn. She had you young."

"Belmont," Adrian admonished, tone chill as death. "That is my mother you're speaking of. Have some respect."

Trevor held his good hand up in mock surrender and the night fell back to easy silence. In truth, Adrian doubted whether his parents had actually even known each other twenty three years. His childhood, if it could be called such, had been spent in isolation from what humanity considered the civilized world.

The days and years had passed in a blur, his mother barely aging at all while he grew at an alarming rate. Seeing Trevor now made him curious whether their childhoods had been all that different. Adrian had grown up too fast and the chaos of the world had forced Trevor to keep up or die.

Adrian finished the stitch line and asked, "Now what?"

"That should do it." Trevor stood and stretched. "Now we wait for morning. I need to fit this to the horses, but don't want to interrupt their rest."

"Oh." Adrian finally pieced together what they'd done.

Trevor snorted again and started banking the fire for the night. "Get some sleep. I'll turn in as soon as I'm done with this."

Liar.

Adrian could hear Belmont's pulse quicken with the pain from the wound in his chest. Not that he could say as much without giving himself away. He wasn't comfortable quite yet with revealing how much he knew. Instead, he turned to the blankets his mother had piled and said, "Very well. Good night, Trevor."

Trevor crouched near the fire and grunted in reply. His chest spasmed as he stood back up and he froze for a moment, not even breathing, until the pain passed. When he finally gave a quiet gasp, his lower lip was bleeding. He wiped at his chin with the back of his hand and regained his balance, weaving to the edge of camp. He'd overdone it.

Of course he had, pushing as hard as he could to make sure they were back on the road in the morning. The pain in his chest kept stabbing as though the head of the bolt were still lodged there. He hated how weak it left him. He hated that it constantly reminded him of his failure to protect the doctor. Then there was the niggling little thought, like a worm digging its way through his insides, that if the doctor hadn't been with him she wouldn't have been in danger.

Trevor walked a short ways into the dark and leaned on a tree, sweat dripping down his neck while another wave of pain ripped through him. He planted himself to keep from running further. Until they reached sanctuary, he had to stay with the doctor and now, her son.

The doctor's son... Had that been why she'd made the comment about the mayor's wife? She had only mentioned one child and if Adrian was already eight years older than him... Perhaps her own pregnancy had been troubled due to her young age? He frowned. Maybe her husband had taken advantage of her. For the first time, Trevor doubted whether the doctor's husband proved as true and decent as Lisa made him out to be. Then again, maybe she aged more gracefully than he'd first thought.

Adrian's features reinforced the idea that the doctor and her husband were nobility. Fine facial bones and long well kempt hair. Clothing that serfs would never be able to afford. They hadn't spoken at length, but his dialogue, as naïve as it seemed, displayed an education that Trevor knew he'd be envious of. It showed just how wonderful the doctor and her husband were as parents.

He couldn't explain it... but his personal alarms were being set off. Maybe it simply conflicted sharply against his own personal experiences. Perhaps he was merely so utterly jaded that the idea of honest, good folk seemed like a lie. Yet still, every time he tried to justify his feelings... nothing helped. He returned to camp without any reassurance.

Lying in his bedroll, he couldn't fall asleep. Not that it mattered, since the sun would rise in less than an hour. He closed his eyes and laid there, waiting to hear movement from the others before pretending to wake up. Surprisingly, the doctor's son had woken up first.

"Sleep well?"

Trevor tried not to yawn and grunted in response again. Taking the leather and cloth harnesses they'd made, he fed the horses and attempted a trial fitting. Stepping back, he admired his work. Approaching footsteps made him glance over a shoulder to where the doctor stretched.

Lisa put a hand to her chin and commented, "It looks good. Think it'll work?"

Trevor stretched as much as he could, wincing the entire time. "I don't have the time or tools to carve another yoke or two, so it'll have to do." Lisa bit her lip and tried to put a hand on his shoulder, but he ducked away and reassured, "I'm fine. We should be on our way."

Her hand hung in the air near her chest for a moment before she nodded in agreement. He walked away before she could insist further. Adrian looked down with a raised eyebrow and walked to his mother. Trevor tried his best to stand tall, but gave up when he started gathering his things.

Lisa tried not to appear uncomfortable while riding a new horse. Since the original pair worked well as a pulling team, they'd kept them together adding one of the highwaymen's horses to their duo. Which meant Lisa had to learn how this animal responded to her while she tried to express confidence to the beast.

Adrian looked over for the fifth time since they'd broken camp and reiterated, "If you would be more comfortable riding in the cart, you should do so."

Lisa raised an eyebrow at him and he immediately faced ahead, eyes on the road. She cast a covert glance toward the cart where Trevor rested. He didn't react to Adrian's suggestion, for which she was grateful. He'd looked hollow, a mere spectre of himself, when she'd woken up. Whether from pride or fear, she didn't understand why he insisted on suffering.

"He's finally asleep. He shouldn't remember anything we say, mother."

She resisted the urge to give him another scolding look and muttered just above the clop of the horses, "I fear he's more stubborn than I, Adrian. I'm not sure how much more I can do to change his mind."

Now Adrian raised an eyebrow at the cart. "Moreso than father?"

Lisa chuckled and kneed her horse closer to her son. "I don't know about that. They have different approaches, but similar cynicism. And he's hurting, Adrian. Not just physically. Trevor is..."

"He's not a lost puppy, mother."

She bit her lip, choosing her next words carefully. "I know, and yet... he is just as endearing." Smiling, soft and kind, Lisa said, "I want you to befriend him, Adrian. I think a trusted peer would be good for him."

"You're probably correct," Adrian mused, "but if he really is that stubborn... I'll do my best."

"Thank you, my son. My wonderful boy."

"Mother," he scoffed.

She giggled more openly and asked, "How did your travels fair?"

Adrian plodded along, comfortable and casual. "The coast is miserable this time of year. I bartered for preserved fish. I know how much you miss sea fare. Then a journey up the fjords for chalk and folklore brought me further north. The aurora is quite beautiful. My weeks were spent among kind folk and others who weren't so accepting. Your language lessons came in handy."

"I'm glad you remembered them."

He shot her a withering look before continuing, "All went well until I returned to the clinic. Mother... what happened?"

Trevor woke to the sounds of travel and murmured conversation. He was drenched in sweat and shivering. He curled in on himself, protecting his core, blinded and mentally numbed to everything except pain.

They were making good progress judging by the sound of the horses. He did his best not to alert the doctor that he'd woken up. That was the last thing he wanted. He wasn't sure how long he lay there before an involuntary whimper, low in his throat, escaped.

As quiet as it seemed, the cart came to a stop and the doctor's face appeared over the side. Trevor felt her cool hand touch the side of his face and tousle his hair. He winced and squeezed his eyes shut, lip quivering, before he finally gave up. "Help me, doctor. Please."

Lisa tsked maternally and called, "Adrian, fetch my medicine bag." Climbing in beside Trevor, she gently helped him sit up and wiped the sweat from his brow with the cuff of her sleeve. "I'm not going to reprimand you for what you already know, dear."

Trevor slumped against her side, glad that she didn't feel the need to point out his stupidity. Then she kissed his hair and he started crying. Once he started, it didn't seem like he could stop. He heard the jingle of glass and then the doctor's son murmured something about moving on. Lisa gave him something that worked well and quick, but stayed with him for the rest of the day's travel. He actually, blissfully, dozed off again.

"Wake up, Trevor. I know you're tired, but if you stay asleep any longer, you won't sleep tonight."

Trevor moaned and cracked an eye. "What time is it?"

Lisa looked at the sky and guessed, "Perhaps, three hours to sunset?" She smiled at him and gently squeezed his hand. "There, finally got some color back into your cheeks. Here, drink."

Trevor took a sip, surprised to find it warm. Once he'd finished the beverage he realized they'd stopped for the day. Glancing around, he saw a small campfire with the smell of stew wafting pleasantly on the spring breeze. "Thank you, Doctor."

Lisa scooted to the edge of the cart and hopped off the back. "You're welcome, Trevor. Now, will you join us for supper?"

He followed sheepishly to where his bedroll had been laid out. Adrian offered a soft smile and asked, "Feeling better?"

Trevor put his forehead on his knees and hugged his legs. "Yes, but I smell like shit."

Adrian gave a surprised snort of laughter and agreed, "Yeah, you do."

Lisa lightly smacked the back of Adrian's head in passing and said, "We all could do with a long soak. There's a creek nearby if you'd like to bathe, Trevor."

The flush of embarrassment left his cheeks as he realized what that meant. They were much closer than he'd expected. "If that's the case, we'll reach our destination the day after tomorrow." He felt a small weight settle once again in his gut now that returning after being away for so long wasn't hypothetical.

"Here, Trevor. Eat up." Adrian settled on the ground next to him and offered a bowl.

Trevor mumbled another, "Thank you," and took the food. He hesitantly ate a few bites before the doctor and her son started speaking about the day's journey. Their enthusiasm and questions about the area and things they'd seen was quite contagious and before he knew it, he'd finished his first and second bowl of stew. Then the doctor gave him another cup of warm tea infused with herbs and for the first time in weeks, he slept soundly through the night.