It just couldn't be, Nathan told himself as he made his way up from the Underground Waterway area and once again to the Audience Room while he searched a route to the upper part of the castle. He swore silently as he stopped to kill a skeleton that stood in the way. He couldn't believe it so easily, no matter what that female demon had said. There was no way in hell they could get control over Hugh.

Nathan dodged a couple of more monsters. He had been through the area a couple of times already while trying to find a way to help his Master, and he didn't care to battle the things anymore. There were tougher monsters around and he wanted to save his strength.

He frowned, knowing too well there was another reason to avoid fighting right now. He was feeling a lot more distracted than he could afford in the current situation. It was only natural to be worried about his Master, sure, and he was sure Hugh could take care of himself. He just couldn't help it; Camilla's words had made him more worried than he should have been.

Embrace the darkness in the soul? Nathan shook his head. He refused the very idea; Hugh would never do something like that. But... What if Camilla was speaking the truth, and Dracula had somehow gained control of his friend? No, it couldn't be - they could not break Hugh's spirit, not so easily. Nathan muttered a curse. He just wouldn't accept it.

It might be that Hugh had been acting a little odd lately, he admitted. Ever since Morris had given him the whip. Still, Hugh was a brilliant fighter and would never give up on anything he started.

Things were too strange in this castle, though. Nathan thought about the few times he had ran into Hugh during his search. Hugh had seemed so obsessed with defeating the monsters and Dracula. Nothing that unusual in the end, since Nathan himself would have done anything to save Morris, but there was something in the way Hugh said it. He had gone as far as telling Nathan to back off, and... Nathan stopped in an empty corridor and sat down by the wall to catch his breath. He needed a break.

Back in the Clock Tower, he had ran into Hugh after defeating the boss monster there. His friend had seemed annoyed at him defeating the monster, then run off. Nathan hadn't figured out what was wrong then, but he had then made his way back down from the tower, and he stopped to one of the rooms around the castle that the monsters didn't seem to like. Those were good for resting, at least - but Hugh had been there, and he had been angry seeing Nathan there. He had accused Nathan of following him, and then almost hit him. Hugh was hot-blooded, true, but Nathan had to admit that ever since coming here, Hugh had acting so very much not like himself.

Nathan had denied it of course. He hadn't been following his friend, but merely trying to find a way to the next castle area. Hugh had grabbed him by the shoulders and pressed him against the wall, mumbling something that sounded nasty, but Nathan hadn't heard exactly what. The dark-haired Hunter had then cursed and tried to grab the whip Nathan carried, but that, he couldn't allow. The whip was his weapon and he needed it.

What had happened then certainly wasn't the first time they had done something just out of whim - it usually started with them practicing or playing, and then either him or Hugh getting a hold of the other. They would look at each other for a second, and end up doing something that Morris Baldwin would have skinned them alive for, if the old man just knew what his son and his student sometimes did. It had been rough, though, and it hadn't seemed like Hugh really wanted it. Nathan hadn't really wanted it either; there was no time and this wasn't the place, but at the moment they had both been too frustrated and it was the only thing he had come up with.

It had been over soon, and while they both had gotten physical release, it left at least Nathan feeling confused. It had been wrong, and he couldn't help but to wonder now what exactly Hugh had been thinking. His friend had left without a word, and the next time Nathan had ran into him in the Chapel Tower, Hugh's words had been insulting.

He still refused to believe that Dracula's power was so overwhelming that Hugh would have fallen under the vampire's control. It was obvious that something was going on, but Nathan didn't want to believe it. He sighed, then stood and made his way across the corridor, entering the next area. He continued, going around a couple of monsters before making his way up, towards the tower he had seen. A bunch of floating monsters, some kind of spirits, blocked his way, but he killed them and moved on.

If Hugh was really under Dracula's control, he would find a way to save him, and then he would save their Master as well. He had to.

Author's notes:

Yet another challenge fic for CV fanfic LJ community, nothing too interesting, moving on. I like porn but this fic doesn't really have any.

- Lady Harken (July, 2006)