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[gynvael]

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Geralt is always reachable by the network. Unless it's an emergency, expect not to hear back for a few hours, if not a few days.

To talk to him in person, you'll need to be in Cadens or go to his domain, a snowy mountain fortress. Yard is open; doors are locked. If he isn't around, leave a delivery with the white wolf.

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[gynvael]

[ That is certainly misery radiating off of Alucard. (More so than usual.) Geralt does not particularly care about being snapped at for his bluntness—largely expects to be—so the fact that he hasn't been says a lot about the dhampir's state.

He pours himself a drink while he listens. Isn't this hitting a little too fucking close to home. His brows draw together. It's difficult to know what to say; he has both been left and been the one who left, for a multitude of complicated reasons. And he sure as hell knows what it is to have someone you had moved on from suddenly enter your life all over again. (It's not ideal.)

For a moment or two, he's silent. He sets an entire bottle of wine in front of Alucard. Vampire can help himself. ]

Do they recall a different relationship with you? [ Considering what this world does, that's an important point to mark. ]

[cryptsleeper]

[There's no attempt to even pour the wine into the cup he was using moments before. The dhampir takes a very, very long sip of the contents, the thud when it actually goes down on the table suspiciously lighter than before.

Alucard can't know how close to home he's managed. He'd laugh if he knew, bitter and horrified and finding some comfort in not being alone in the matter.]

No. She knows she's been away for some time. Any further details were not discussed. [It absolutely devolved into a shouting match.] Seemed surprised that a basic apology didn't go over well.

[gynvael]

[ This isn't his business. Neither was Alucard's confession about his father, but that had been a matter over and done with. This is...a present complication. Frankly, he hasn't got a clue what Alucard is looking for out of him, but Alucard also knows him by now—knows what he'll get when he brings something like this to the Witcher's attention—and so he decides not to speculate on what's going through Alucard's mind.

Instead, he offers the same candor he always does. ] Then perhaps your impressions were wrong. And there's nothing more to pursue.

[ Sometimes, you don't mean as much to someone as you believed. Sometimes that's simply what it is. Geralt has never found a good reason to search for what he knows isn't there, to keep people in your life who don't wish to be involved. He thinks Alucard could learn to do the same. ​]

[cryptsleeper]

Mm.

[The rumble Alucard makes suggests that this is something he had considered. But he considered it in the abstract and under the assumption that neither Belmont nor Speaker would appear here. Moving on is easier without the other person constantly around. Or thinking they can right a wrong and everything will be just fine.

Long, slender fingers reach up into his own hair, for want of something to hold onto.]

Knowing what I do of her, she'll probably come back. Try the same apology again, and begin this cycle anew. Short of leaving the city, I'm not sure how to ensure a conversation will be final.

[gynvael]

[ His eyebrow lifts a little at that. Until now, he'd assumed this woman didn't much care to pursue Alucard further.

Look, he's also lacking in real solutions here. Geralt's default mode is either to drive someone away or avoid them altogether, if he wants nothing to do with them. Not replying, in his opinion, is a perfectly fine way to ensure a conversation will be final. Combined with telling them to fuck off.

But he's also stubborn enough to never give an answer if he wants to. So there's that.

His gaze rests on Alucard, critical in its examination. ] Are you asking me about this because you want an excuse to be rid of her or because you want a reason to forgive her?

[cryptsleeper]

[Sypha is the most stubborn woman alive, Geralt. Can't wait for you to meet her.

Alucard manages to meet Geralt's eyes, although there's nothing clarifying in his own gaze. Uncertainty comes off of him in waves. He's drowning in it.]

I'm asking because you're one of the few people with a long term perspective, and you likely have experience with those who don't take final conversations as final conversations.

[gynvael]

I also don't give a fuck about most people.

[ That may or may not be up for debate, but that's what Geralt is going with for this conversation. Because they're not here to discuss his particular habits when it comes to handling relationships, or exactly how he is about getting attached. ]

As long as you care about her, you'll never be rid of her.

[ Is he talking about Alucard or himself now? It doesn't matter. He knows, better than anyone, that sometimes the best thing to do is to close off your heart. And maybe some would try to tell him otherwise, but of those he's allowed into his life—it's been the exception, rather than the rule, that anything good has come of it. ]

[cryptsleeper]

[Not giving a fuck is the real reason he's asking, if Alucard was forced to be utterly honest with himself. Until he manages to get into his crypt, he probably needs to be better about not giving a fuck.

He closes his eyes, trying to process. It was easier when the only person from home was Hector. That much has become upsettingly obvious over the past several weeks.]

How do you move away from that then?

[gynvael]

[ He sighs. This conversation is not what he needs. It feels like Alucard is asking, How do I stop caring, like you?, and the truth is, one does not. Sometimes he feels everything, sometimes he feels nothing, sometimes it's both all at once. None of it leaves him in a remotely ideal frame of mind.

And all these digging questions only brings forward too many jagged pieces of his past, his life. One that he does not share with Alucard. Not even close. Doesn't Alucard realize that he was raised so much more gently than a Witcher ever was? (Doesn't he realize he's asking for something Geralt has never wanted for himself? Something that even a hundred years later still leaves a painful wound that refuses to scar? That he's only the way he is because he was not given the choice to be otherwise?) ]

Every Witcher grows up understanding they are unwanted, from childhood. [ There's an underlying bitterness he can't completely hide, a rising irritation that makes him say too much. ] I did not move away from it. I was never a part of it. If you really want the same, I suggest you go back in time and ask your mother to discard you on the side of a fucking road instead of granting you your loving little home.

[cryptsleeper]

[Geralt's right. Not caring is the goal, because not caring means not dealing with this train wreck. Alucard knows he's bitter and angry at Sypha for being here at all, and it is in no small part because he felt he was doing better. He has a goal to work towards, and had found at least two people to confide in about the worst of it. Hell, Gideon had gotten him to laugh. Multiple times. That was an absolute victory, and yet just by mere presence, everything had been undone.

It also means he's absolutely not considering the few things that Geralt had shared of his past and making a few educated guesses about what not to ask, or at least consider what emotional minefields he might be stepping on.

So it means he reacts visibly to what the Witcher says next. A wince. And then a realization that this isn't going to help. Not how he thought it might, anyway. He's made another fucking mistake, and at least this time he can leave the conversation without being dragged into it again and again.

He stands up. Carefully, if only not to knock anything over. Makes sure to at least neaten his spot.]

I've taken up enough of your time. Thank you for the perspective.

[Curt and without emotion. The same dhampir from the cell in the first week.

He knows the way to the door.]