"Plain, I just want it plain!" Leon sighed in exasperation.

The Starbucks barista looked up at him with confusion. "Plain what sir?"

"Just… anything!" Leon, annoyed with the exchange, threw five dollars at her.

"Do you want whip-cream wit—"

"No!" Turning around sharply on his heel, Leon marched out of the Starbucks.

"You didn't get your drink yet," Joachim pointed out as he exited the doors.

"I just… I don't even care," Leon cast his gaze aside curtly. "You can have it, Soma."

"Score!" Soma whooped, entering the café.

Leon took a seat beside his beloved, who glared at him scornfully. "You said you'd bring me tea, you fucking dipshit."

"Forgive me, my dearest, I…" Leon began.

"I'll get it." Joachim offered, standing up from his seat and drifting to the doors in an unusually giving manner.

"Joachim… are you sure?" Leon asked skeptically.

The vampire rolled his eyes at him. "Yes, I'm sure."

"Thank you," Leon nodded, handing him cash. "Oh, and walk. You will frighten people if you float around like that."

Indeed, a few people looked a little spooked, but Joachim just hummed indifferently as he dropped to the ground and walked into the store. When he stood next to Soma in line, the youth arched his eyebrow at him. "Did I just hear you offer to do something for someone else?"

"Not really," the vampire said, "I just wanted to get away from Dracula. He won't stop crying."

"Can I take your order, sir?" the barista asked helpfully.

"I need a refill of tea," Joachim stated, holding out his overly recycled plastic Starbucks cup.

"I'm sorry sir, we don't do refills," the barista explained apologetically.

"Really?" Joachim pressed. "You could refill it with tea, blood, or coffee and I wouldn't care. Just no decaf please."

The barista gave him a strange look, appearing like she wanted to say something more, but instead she politely said, "Sorry, sir, I can't refill any of those. Especially blood. Company policy."

"Oh." With that, Joachim threw his journeyed recycled plastic Starbucks cup into the garbage. He handed her Leon's money. "I'll have two teas."

Meanwhile, outside, Alucard was trying his best, and failing, to console his father. "It was a really old castle, anyway."

"I loved that castle!" Dracula continued to weep emo tears, banging his head on the table they were all sitting around.

"Don't worry, Drac, I'll help you rebuild," Isaac reassured him.

"Really?" Dracula looked up, finally drying his eyes.

Isaac nodded curtly. "A real man never goes back on his word."

"Thank you, Isaac," the lord of the night replied with a small smile. "I think… you've become my favorite again."

"I'd hope so," Sara scoffed with a wayward glance back in the direction of Castlevania's ruins. "None of your others are alive anymore."

At this, Dracula shook his head, "I will revive them with the castle… I do hope Saccubus will forgive me."

"It's not impossible," Leon said as he held Sara's hand. She glared back at him murderously.

At this moment, the doors to the café swung open, and both Joachim and Soma reluctantly took their seats back at the table.

After the vampire handed Sara her tea, Soma finally noticed that the woman was still around. Pointing to her, the white haired youth asked, "How is she still alive?"

"Oh, it turns out she's always been alive," Leon explained with an embarrassed smile. "I just never knew I could pull her out of the whip until now."

"I fucking hate you so much…" Sara scowled at the Belmont, taking her tea and glaring daggers at him between sips.

Suddenly, Joachim recalled something so important that he had to announce it immediately. "Soma, we never got to see your 'bitchin' attack'."

Soma's eyes widened, and he clutched his hair tightly in his fists. "Auugh! No way! I can't believe I forgot!"

"I'm beginning to think it doesn't exist," the vampire commented offhandedly.

"Oh, it's bitchin' and it attacks," Soma assured him. "And it exists."

"We'll have to see it later," Leon said with a smile. He simply couldn't be upset with anything right now. Except the barista.

Time passed quickly, and as Leon looked around the table, he couldn't imagine a better outcome to their venture. Despite their original reservations about entering Castlevania again, it seemed everyone had come out better off than before.

Dracula had been swayed to a less threatening persuasion, giving Alucard his father back and Leon his old comrade. Currently, the lord of the night was vehemently discussing the finer aspects of tea with his son.

Isaac, now no longer trapped within Castlevania, seemed manlier than ever. Soma, determined to find a cheap way to get tougher, was prodding the former devil forger for tips on how to body-build quickly.

Despite dying again, Joachim appeared somewhat saner than when they left. As he sipped his tea, Leon could have sworn that he appeared a little more indignant and calculating than before, but he chalked it up to the vampire's usual resentment.

And of course, Leon couldn't forget the most important part of his night: Sara was again by his side, and not just in whip form. She wasn't quite the girl that he had originally proposed to, but he had sworn to love her regardless of how the sands of time may change them.

It wasn't long before the Starbucks barista was not-so-happily pulling at their chairs, making wild declarations like, "Get up, I want to go home." and "I have to win that bid on ebay tonight."

Soma's eyes narrowed. He had a bid to win on ebay tonight too.

Reluctantly, they stood to relinquish their chairs but didn't leave the premises just yet. The Starbucks girl to sighed with annoyance and started cleaning around them.

With sincerity and appreciation, Leon nodded to each of them in turn. "Comrades, I thank you for your help. I shall never forget our adventure, and should the world need us again, I know I can count on every one of you to be there."

Alucard and Isaac nodded dutifully. Soma pumped an enthusiastic fist in the air, "I can't let Leon-Fucking-Belmont take all the glory!"

Dracula and Joachim both looked aside noncommittally. Sara only gazed at him with contempt. "You would risk your life to save the world?"

"I would," Leon smiled at her gently, turning to the others to wave a final farewell. "Thank you again, friends. I cannot say how happy I am that we all part in peace. Farewell."

After seeing each of them wave, he took a reluctant Sara's hand in his and led her down the walkway to his home.

It wasn't long before he and Sara both noticed something unsettling.

"We're being followed," Sara said quietly, so as not to alert the attention of their follower.

"I know," Leon whispered back. "What should we do about it?"

"You figure it out, fucktard," the dark haired woman scowled back.

"Very well," the Belmont said, his eyes hardening with determination. "I will do what I must."

Quickly, Leon spun around to face his pursuers. "You are all welcome to stay at my place."

Dracula, Alucard, Soma, Isaac, and Joachim all seemed rather pleased to hear that.

"What?" Sara hissed, slapping Leon across the cheek. "You're just going to invite a bunch of people to stay over without giving me any warning?"

"Yes?" Leon said innocently. "We destroyed Dracula and Isaac's home. Besides, Joachim has already been living in the basement on and off for the last few hundred years."

"I hate you so much…" Sara seethed.

Seeing as that she wasn't swearing at him, Leon took it as a good sign. "Alucard, Soma… you are both welcome as well, but don't you have homes of your own?"

"I refuse to let Adrian out of my sight," Dracula declared, pulling Alucard along by the sleeve of his suit jacket. "He's such a depressed child. Knowing him, he would try to kill and bury himself again in some awful tomb for the next hundred years."

"I… that isn't true," Alucard murmured unconvincingly.

"I see," Leon nodded, then turned to the other. "What about you, Soma?"

"I don't wanna fucking go home," Soma folded his arms with a frown. "That place is a fucking shit-hole."

"You could have just said you live with your parents," Joachim said dryly.

Soma glared at the vampire contemptuously. "No! I didn't ever… how do you know?"

As Leon listened to them all bicker on the way to his house, he couldn't help but smile. Last evening, he had left his home prepared to die. Actually, he was expecting it. Through their entire journey, he had been gearing up for the inevitable. This evening, Leon had expected to have a silent requiem with no mourners nor attendees for his passing.

Yet, somehow, they had found a way to save the day and destroy the evil within Castlevania without his death. Perhaps he hadn't trusted his companions enough?

"After the Lament of Innocence, this will be my Requiem… of Trust," Leon murmured dramatically to the wind.

"…and would you quit talking to yourself? It's really starting to get fucking annoying," Sara growled at him angrily.

"Anything for you, my dear. Anything for you," Leon replied with a smile, ignoring his beloved's scowl as they all entered his home.

Sad that it's over? (Though I couldn't imagine why…) Don't be! This story will indeed have a sequel featuring brand-new (or should I say good-old?) Castlevania characters. Don't worry, your favorite crew will still be around but with a few happy additions. ^_^

If you look on my profile page, chapter 1 of "Modern Problems" should already be there for your reading pleasure.

Thank you to everyone who read and supported this fic the entire way! For those of you who do not follow me to the sequel, I hope that you have enjoyed the read! Please leave some final comments. =)

Special thanks goes out to everyone who left me a review! Your encouragement truly means so much to me! : True Hyper Sonic, LadyArmster, Wild Fantasy, Willowfur, SunLord89, OrgXIIIisbetterthantheAkatski, sara, Lonewolf 102, MoonlitLuna, LoMXD, Selfish Vampire Mint, Great Chapter So Far (this one still cracks me up!) , Nano*mecka, James Birdsong, Biru-chan, Teros, BlueBird, eterniawolf, and etc.

Chapter Trivia #13 Answer:

In the course of this story, you may have noticed something different about Leon, Joachim, Soma, Alucard, Dracula, Isaac, or perhaps another character. Which character is out of character?

Hopefully by this point you have realized that they are all out of character. Purposefully, by the way. I hope, however, that it is in a lovable and memorable way. Thanks for reading!