Fiiinally making use of this name.

[arikado]

I had wondered if you might. You have owned it for a little over a year now.

[He pauses, takes a largely unnecessary breath, then settles his gaze rather fixedly on his mun.]

Even now, I realize you are only doing this to appease the whims of a friend, but regardless, I don't appreciate wastefulness. You may prefer my... earlier form to this, but it was a necessary decision, and if you intend to keep me here, I expect I'll be put to good use. I refuse to sit idly by when there is work to be done.

Are we clear on that? Good.

Comments

[sanctuarysoul]

[The look on Lisa's face is priceless. She's kind of staring at the man before her with a mixture of wonder, curiosity and outright confusion. The tone and phrasing reminds her a lot of her husband -- to say nothing of his looks. The only problem is, there's something about his features that don't quite match Dracula's, and the voice definitely doesn't fit. But, maybe that had something to do with the youthful form.]

I...

...Vlad?

[arikado]

[That... is not a reaction Arikado's received in a long time, especially when there was almost no one around who had seen his father's face anymore. But this is his mother, no question, and he has changed more in the past several decades than she could ever know-- not just physically. It doesn't surprise him then, on that note, that she might mistake him for some other form of his father, when she has only known the blond-haired dhampir with yellow eyes to be Adrian.

A smile hasn't quite reached his face. At the heart of things, he's still stunned to see her standing before him.]

...Hello Mother.

[sanctuarysoul]

[The words shoot through Lisa so precisely that it feels like her heart has leapt to her throat. Her face must be priceless -- complete and utter shock expressed in her widened eyes and silenced voice.

If she had been drinking something, she surely would have choked.]

...I...

...and you're...

but...

...okay.

[She tries desperately to find words, but fails because what.

She's so stunned that it takes her longer than it usually would to take stock of the fact that, hey, he's probably just as surprised to see her, all things considered.]

...I feel as though we both have a little explaining to do, don't we?

[arikado]

[Arikado feels equally awkward, but remains motionless. He doesn't even casually tuck his hands into the pockets of his suit as he often does; he feels obligated to stand proper. After all, his mother deserves the utmost respect, though in reality, he knows such minor things would not bother her. It doesn't stop him from practicing the highest form of respect regardless.]

We do at that... [He's not a little boy anymore, but he desperately wishes to embrace his mother as though he were. It's been centuries since he last saw her, and no amount of well-practiced self-control he's so well-known for can contain the emotion in his eyes.] Perhaps you should start.

[His story would take a while.]

Snail mommy is a snail!

[sanctuarysoul]

[The emotion in his eyes triggers the same in her own, and it's all she can do not to run to him and sweep him into a huge, warm hug like she used to when he was little -- even though now he's big enough to do the sweeping himself.

It's a bittersweet thought, she can't help but realize. On one hand, she's incredibly proud and awestruck by the person that stands before her, but on the other, it only drives home how much of his life she's missed.

Pushing that thought aside, she nods. He does deserve an explanation before she moves to make any solid contact, purely out of respect. If there is any (absolutely valid) doubt to the authenticity of her form, she would do well to diminish it so that there are no uncertainties when she gets there.]

Ah, I think you're right.

[Where to even start?]

Well...the abridged version is that the chaos that began to take over your father caused me to be unable to rest. I tried for centuries to make my way to either of you, but I was confined, largely, to the Chapel.

It took me longer than I would have liked, but eventually I was able to venture out for limited periods of time. During one of those outings, I found a witch that I'd known when I was alive. In her infinite kindness, she gave me this pendant.

[She says, gesturing to her necklace.]

With it, I'm able to maintain a solid form, even though I'm still technically...

[She trails off, unable to speak the word in his presence.]

I've been looking for you ever since, but the castle changes so much that it's been..."disorienting" to say the least.

[She almost launches into questions about his current state, but realizes he may still have things to ask her. Luckily, patience is a trait that she has in spades, so she will gladly wait to see if she can answer any question that he may have.]