Catching Shadows

Disclaimer: Castlevania belongs to Konami, not me. I am making ?0.00 out of this fic, it is written purely because I have a burning need to create. Although I would like to own Alucard . . . then he'd be mine.

Rating: PG-13

Setting: Set Post Symphony of the Night and Pre Nocturne of Recollection. Sort of a spiritual successor to my earlier fic The Hunt.

Authoress note: Maria is being hunted.

Maria was regretting agreeing to this.

She rarely ventured out beyond the smallholding after dark, even capable as she was, and with the castle long gone, it was still foolish to wander in the night without a very good reason.

This region was well known throughout the land, men came here particularly to make a name for themselves as specialist hunters. As even when the castle was not risen, this place was a haven for monsters.

All of this combined to make Maria feel very, very foolish for agreeing to this.

But when she heard a snicker overhead, a feeling of satisfaction rose in her, crushing her fear and self-doubt. This was worth it. It had taken months of gentle coxing, but he was finally starting to come out of his shell around her. She was glad of it, especially when he revealed a childish sense of humour. It suited him.

"I doubt very much that an actual vampire hunting a poor defenceless girl would laugh at her," she said loudly but kept walking, crouching low to the ground, ready for an attack.

She wasn't, however, ready enough.

There was a slight rustle in the leaves behind her, then a shadow moved. Something pinched her neck firmly, but ultimately harmlessly before it was gone.

"You are neither poor nor defences," his voice seemed to echo from everywhere. Maria rubbed her neck. "You are, however, dead, my lady."

"Again!" she snapped. "And stop sniggering!"

"I do not snigger," he sounded mildly affronted. "Sniggering is for louts."

"Forgive me, your majesty," she muttered. "Do princes not snigger?" she watched the trees above her, the moonlight bright enough that she could make out some movement, but whether it was him or just the wind she couldn't tell. She clutched her short sword tightly.

"You're looking in the wrong direction," he still sounded far too amused for Maria's liking. She spun on her heal looking down the road and the bastard dropped behind her again and pinched her neck before vanishing into nothingness.

"You rotten cheat!" she yelled. He was definitely sniggering now.

"Life is cruel and unfair," he said, again his voice echoing, sounding both far away and right behind her in turns. "We must prepare you."

"I'm going to wipe that smile off your face," she muttered.

"Such threats!" he sounded like he was trying to be offended. "From a lady, no less." Maria bent down, picked up the biggest stone she could find and threw it into the bushes.

"Take that," she said.

"You missed," his voice was flat that time. "However did you survive the castle?"

"I'll have you know I'm a formidable opponent when what I'm fighting isn't hiding from me like a coward," Maria snapped. For a long moment, there was no response.

"Do you see how I don't let petty insults move me to reveal my position?" he sounded so smug it was practically a physical force. "Whereas a bit of gentle teasing has you lobbing rocks into shadows."

"You are so dead when I catch you," Maria couldn't help the amusement in her voice.

"You're dead three times over, my lady," he said.

"Best four out of five," she said. She caught a glint of moonlight on what was probably one of his many ridiculously shiny buttons and moved forwards. She made a point of trying to look like she had spotted nothing until she was only a few feet away.

With confidence, she leapt and hit something solid that smelt like him. Grinning, she kept her grip but pulled back to look at him.

It was a tree.

He'd hung his coat on a tree and left it there as bait.

"Shit," Maria turned, but once again she was a fraction to slow. He was right behind her. Turning into him was like turning into a wall. Once again she was pinched and before she could even move her sword hand, he was mist and vanishing into the forest.

Maria stumbled back onto the road, deliberately dragging his coat into the mud behind her.

"Maria!" Richter's voice made her jump. She turned and spotted him a little way up the road. "What are you doing!"

"Um…" Maria managed.

"Annette told me you'd gone out, I doubted her, I can't believe she was right! You know how dangerous it is out here!"

"I was perfectly safe," Maria muttered. "I was getting an education."

"A what?" Richter frowned.

"An education in hunting vampires," Maria drew herself up, but she was still considerably shorter than Richter.

"That makes no sense," Richter pinched the bridge of his nose. "You know better than to wander the roads at night, the only things these monsters stay away from are bigger monsters."

"Hello," Alucard said, emerging from the trees. Richter turned a delightful shade of pink, at least Maria assumed he did, it was too dark to tell for sure, but his sudden inward turn in body language let her know he was embarrassed.

"We were having a lesson," Maria said.

"One Maria was failing," Alucard reached out for his, now muddy, coat. Maria stepped away from him, keeping the coat. She pulled it over her shoulders.

"This is mine now," she said firmly. "For putting up with your harassment." The coat was heavy and far too big for her, its hem trailed into the mud.

"Regardless," Richter said, regaining himself. "This was still very dangerous."

"There is nothing in the immediate area," Alucard said. "A small werewolf pack is to the north, we're too far from the river to bother the nymphs, and I removed the troll clan last week."

"Be that as it may…" Richter said.

"It's cold," Maria said. "We should go home if Richter is finished lecturing us on how dangerous it is to be out by ourselves while he's also out by himself."

"As you wish," Alucard dipped his head to her. Richter huffed for a moment before smiling and turning to lead them back towards the small holding.

"That's not the end of this," Maria said, falling into step with Alucard.

"Not at all," Alucard breathed, "but perhaps starting you off in the dark was too much. We should resume the lesson tomorrow evening, perhaps get you a long-range weapon better than rocks."

"I'd like that," Maria smiled. "It was fun."

"It was rather, it's been a long time since I hunted anything so discourteous as yourself."

"Thank… I'm not discourteous!"

"You threw rocks at me, or tried to," Alucard hissed. Richter snorted.

"I'm telling Annette you threw rocks," Richter said.

"She'll applaud me," Maria said. "When I tell her how awful you were."

"I was not awful," Alucard said. "I was a kind and benevolent teacher."

"You were not kind!" Maria snapped. "I'm getting you back tomorrow, you'll see. I'll recruit Annette to help me."

"That is truly a terrifying thought," Alucard smiled at her. "When I win, I want my coat back, washed."

"No, I told you this is mine now," Maria clutched the fabric tight.

"You'll never win that argument," Richter said. Alucard sighed.

"Don't worry," Maria bumped him with her shoulder. "I'll make you a new coat, a better one."

"I look forward to it," Alucard smiled. "My lady."

End fic

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