Tears of an Angel

Disclaimer: Hellsing is the creation of Kouta Hirano. I\'m in no way making any kind of monetary gain from writing this story. Also, the only character really belonging to me so far is Sean and that\'s it! Enjoy chapter 2!



Tears Of An Angel:



Chapter 2: Dark Knight In Tarnished Armor



Alucard stood front and center before his master, Integra\'s desk. Currently, the glacial blond was ranting and raving; giving him a dress down she thought he\'d not soon forget!



"Alucard, I can\'t believe you! First you allowed two humans to see you, then you hypnotized one of them to take a walk out in front of a bus! How stupid can you get!? And another thing, why did you take the girl home? She would\'ve woken up and been just fine, but no, you had to go and put your nosy vampire ass into the whole situation." Crossing her arms, Integra fought the urge to take a baseball bat after the arrogant git and beat him to a unrecognizable pulp. "Our clean up crew had a hell of a time taking care of that bloody heaping mess you left behind! What do you have to say for yourself?"



"Personally speaking, I had a great time tonight. Thanks for asking. You should\'ve come along and we would have had such fun. You could\'ve let your hair down and truly lived for one night." An unexplainable expression crossed his features,"Oh, well, regrets are for the living anyway. I regret nothing. Maybe next time you\'ll come along for the fun." Eyes narrowing, the tone of his voice mockingly continued, "Could it be the sound of jealousy ringing in here?" Appearing by her side, his next words echoed lightly in her ears. "Would you want me to take you in my arms and carry you as I did her? Or is it that you desperately wish to be so free of your constraints that, for one night just be yourself? What would it take for you to lighten up and realize you only have one life, one chance? This place, this organization, Hellsing itself, will be here tomorrow and the next day. You might not be. You have to make that choice."



His spoken words wrapped around her skin and gave her a slight case of goosebumps. "Forget it! I don\'t want you to ever touch me that way again."



Her voice dripped with icy scorn as much as his had oozed seduction and heat. "Keep trying and wishing, Alucard, but it\'ll never happen." Her face and voice softened somewhat with her next statement. "The offer is appreciated, however." Staring back down at the papers on her desk, "Now, for tonight, you have another mission. This mission, for all purposes, is not your typical shoot, kill and maim. For starters, you won\'t be doing any of that unless trouble shows up."



"So just what kind of pansy mission are you sending me out on?" The vampire\'s curiosity was piqued. He couldn\'t help but spout a small smart assed comment at her. It was in his nature and would never cease or go away. "What have you gotten me into, Integra?"



"You are to escort and protect a young lady by the name of Seras, Victoria, who\'s the daughter of a prominent English businessman and kin to the Queen. He\'s been receiving weekly threats to his daughter\'s existence from an unknown source, however, our sources believe that the threatening letters are being sent from a recent new order of society for freak vampires. And just last night, the letters were stepped up from literary threats to actual gruesome, macabre human corpses. So until these threats are eliminated, you are to protect her with your life, Alucard. I will not allow failure. And should any sudden outbreaks of activity occur around here, I\'ll call for you and send Garreth or Walter to watch over Seras."



He feigned boredom, crossing his arms and shrugging at the mission he\'d just been briefed on. "So, now, I\'m just a glorified babysitter now?" Rolling his eyes he could just imagine the bitchy brat that would be under his care from here on out.



Smirking, the blond took hold of a picture on her desk. "Somehow, I find it hard to believe that you\'ll refuse this mission. Not that I\'d let you, of course, but I\'ll bet this girl is right up your alley!" She handed him the picture and waited for the reaction to come.



Accepting the object from his master\'s gloved hand, his bloody, red eyes widened in surprise. The female in the picture was HIS Seras! There could\'ve been more than one Seras, Victoria in England, only there wasn\'t. Good thing for him. The picture had been taken in bright daylight. He admired the short blond strands caressing her face; her eyes such a bright blue that they\'d rival the sea. He thought to himself, \'This is my lucky day!\' and then he allowed his passively, bored mask to fall back into place.



It was too late. Integra had seen every expression that had crossed his face. Her servant was definitely attracted to the girl and that would more than likely force him to stick closely by her side. Alucard was the best that she had, but the drawback for him was that he needed to sleep during the day. But if it were truly freaks coming after Seras then they would also have to sleep during the day as well. Too many variables already coming into the situation; Integra massaged her temples gently, encouraging the burgeoning migraine to go away.



"Alucard, do your best not to embarrass me, please? And that\'s not just a request, consider it an order. One that I expect you to obey." Slamming her fist down on the huge, wooden desk, Integra accented her action with her words. "Trust me, Alucard, you really don\'t want to know the sort of punishment for failure to carry out any of the orders that I\'ve charged you with. Do you understand?"



"Promises, promises. You know I love a good torture. So how will you spank me?" Alucard purposefully threaded his words with heavily induced tones of enticement and malicious teasing.



Frowning at the boldness of his words, she gave him an evil stare worthy of Alucard himself. Growling at him, she seethed "Get...out...of...my...office...now! Go see Walter after you leave and then head to your new mission post. I believe you already know her address. Go straight there when you\'re done with Walter."



The mercurial vampire straightened his posture bowing his head slightly toward the young woman. "I accept and acknowledge these orders. What about the approval should it require the need to be invoked?"



"Should you need my approval you will have it. Just contact me in the usual way and permission will be given, long as the situation warrants it. All the same control restrictions apply so don\'t think you can go haywire being on your own. Dismissed." She watched as Alucard backed into his shadowy void. "Wait, Alucard." His exit halted and he paused to listen, the inky portal closed under his command. "Make sure you take plenty of supplies with you and you know to what I\'m referring." Blue eyes unwaveringly met fiercely lit crimson ones. She\'d never back down on certain things where he was concerned.



"Understood. Don\'t worry. I won\'t feed on the unknowing masses no matter how much fun it\'d be. It\'s such a shame life can\'t be what it once was... the ladies, the impalings and the screams! The torturous fun and blood that I used to bathe in without a thought."



Integra observed his face as it became animated with such callous, psychotic and feral light. Occasionally when the vampire spoke of his past he sometimes put her on edge. The horrendous things he\'d done would make any mortal, and sometimes immortal, shudder with a sense of self preservation and fear.



Malevolent laughter spilled forth from his lips. He deemed it his job in his un-life to darkly tease and taunt the Hellsing heiress. He enjoyed her arguments and shouting! Those sounds briefly reminded him of his former life before he became entrapped by the Hellsing forefather himself, Abraham Van Hellsing. Damned old man couldn\'t have left well enough alone. The vampire was cursed to serve his family forever but he wouldn\'t say that serving under Integra didn\'t have it\'s moments. She had more fire and strength in her than a hundred mortal men! She was surely one that was worthy of his gift, but she\'d never accept due to her heritage and sense of overbearing pride in her family\'s honor.



"Farewell my master." Alucard shut his train of thought down quickly. Opening the dark void he stepped inside in search of Walter. The portal closed behind him leaving Integra alone in the huge room with silence pressing down on her.



Walter had just finished making a slight adjustment to Alucard\'s Jackal. The vampire would be extremely pleased with the addition! Picking of the soft cloth, he polished it until it met with his rigid approval. Walter\'s eyes slid from side to side. "Alucard, I know you\'re there so stop hiding in the shadows." Lifting his black gloved hand, the aging butler sent out a thin silver wire to strike out the gathering shadows. Without turning, he knew that he\'d hit his intended target.



"You never miss a thing do you, Walter?" The towering creature left his hiding place to reveal his form to his friend. "The Angel of Death still hasn\'t lost his touch. When will you come back to the field again? I miss our night\'s of massacring the freaks, getting drunk and spinning the bullshit!" His face expectantly awaited the retainer\'s response.



"Alucard, you know as well as I do that it won\'t be anytime soon. I enjoying serving Sir Integra and I refuse to leave her side." The entire time, Walter never stopped polishing the metal in his artful hands.



"Yeah. I just bet you love serving her. Or are you referring to the other ways in which you serve her? I\'ve heard the two of you late at night, you dirty old man!" Alucard stoutly attempted to hide his grin from the man in front of him.



"Really? And just what were you doing with her so long ago? I\'m sure you weren\'t just teaching her The Vampire Basics 101, were you?" One good turn deserves another. At least that\'s what Walter believed.



"Touche, Walter! Seems we both wanted a slice of icy pie!" What the hell? Alucard was stunned to find a pistol pointed directly at his face.



"Do not ever disrespect her that way in front of me ever again, Alucard. I don\'t care what you\'re reasons are and this is the only warning you\'ll ever get from me on that subject." The butler coldly appraised his lecherously, insulting behavior. "You\'re one of my oldest, closest friends, but I won\'t tolerate remarks like that made about the lady that runs this organization!



Alucard grinned so that his fangs barely were concealed beneath his upper lip. The sadistic vampire patted the retainer on his shoulders. "Welcome back, Walter. I really missed you, Angel of Death! I was beginning to think they\'d sucked all the fire out of you." His red glance slid to the weapon held tenderly in the older man\'s cautious grasp. "What have you been up to, old man?"



"I shouldn\'t even tell you after you made those remarks, but since a young lady\'s safety may depend on this I couldn\'t in good consciousness allow personal feelings to interfere. So pay attention." Flipping a small switch on the handle of his pistol, Walter ejected the magazine from it\'s resting place. Removing one of the bullets he held it under Alucard\'s nose.



"It\'s a bullet, Walter. So what?"



"Patience. And yes, it\'s a bullet. Really, sometimes you\'re powers of observation are so keen and stunning!" Sarcasm laced his words heavily. "Back to the subject. You\'ve used mercury ignition bullets before and I\'ve made an improvement to them."



"Really, Walter, go on." The creature\'s curiosity had gotten the better of him and so easily too.



"They are still the same bullets, only on impact they completely scatter. Oh, also, they contain holy water to accompany the mercury and silver that have been put into each round. It will be the equivalent of watching mini fireworks explode in front of you. And one other thing, on impact each round will fragment, and should any freak be standing close by, well, let\'s just say he\'ll go down with his friend. The fragmentation perimeter is about five feet, so make sure that you\'re not too close when firing or you might get a dose of your own bullet."



Walter loaded the ammunition back into the clip and popped the magazine back into the Jackal. Handing the pistol over to Alucard, Walter felt pride at a job well done. The look in the vampire\'s eyes were thanks enough. It was pretty funny to watch a vampire holding a pistol and looking at it with the eagerness and happiness of a child with a new toy or a piece of candy.



Alucard held the Jackal straight out in front of him level with the floor. Staring down it\'s sight, he tested the weight and found that the changes didn\'t really affect it\'s handling after all. Walter was a god when it came to designing weapons and ammunition. Eventually, he\'d die but his creations would live on. "Walter, I\'m itching to try out this new ammo. I will report to you after it\'s initial testing and breaking in. You know I expect great things from it just like everything else you\'ve ever made. I\'m sure there will be no problems. And another thing, you made the Jackal a little bit heavier didn\'t you?"



"Yes, I did. I wanted a little bit more weight to compensate for the slightly heavier bullets and I also made it just a little bit longer so the handle needed the added weight to counterbalance for the ammo and the slightly more elongated barrel. So there you have it." Reaching down to the floor, the former Hellsing operative turned retainer sat a huge black, heavy bag down on the table at their side. "This is your supplies for the next week. This bag is a specially refrigerated unit that will stay cold for several days, up to about six days, to be precise. So my advice, when you get there, stow a couple in the young lady\'s freezer where she won\'t see them so you\'ll have a couple of back up packs." Blowing out a breath Walter smiled and said, " Alright, I\'m done here. Integra said that you were to gather your things and leave immediately for Miss Seras\' home to start your mission. Goodbye and good luck, Alucard."



Walter left the room leaving the vampire to his chaotic thoughts. Snatching up his newly acquired bag, Alucard already had everything he needed. It\'s a good thing vampire\'s always pack light, their possessions usually being things that can be quickly abandoned if it were required. Taking the time to glance around the room, he was ready to see the fun this mission would bring! At least he\'d be away from the manor and Integra for a while! For once his master would have the beloved peace and quiet she so often sought after with him around. Melting into the gloomy shadows at the edges of the room, Alucard left a part of his larger than life presence behind so Walter wouldn\'t feel completely alone.



The absurdly tall vampire stalled for a moment and stared at the back of the manor. Integra stood at the windows in her study watching him through carefully shuttered eyes. Raising a hand, she waved it briefly and then dropped it back to her side and then she disappeared from behind the panes of glass. Turning back away from the large house, he vanished into the wind and commanded it\'s currents to take him to Seras. She was his mission and it was going to be a pleasure for him to fulfill.



Moments later, he stood outside the door leading in to Seras\' home. He heard two loud voices arguing. Listening carefully, he noted that one of them was a brassed off male and the other, distinctly, was a agitated and upset female. Instinctively, he knew that Seras was in there having a fight with her boyfriend. If the situation got out of control, he\'d be there to shut it down and fast! All part of the job now, but he\'d do it even if it wasn\'t his job. The volume of the voices escalated into shouting. Damn! They\'d have the police on their doorstep if this continued!



"Sean, it\'s not my fault! My father did this without my permission, without even asking me about it or how I felt! Did you think that I arranged this?"



A second of silence cut through the angry voices.



"How am I supposed to know? Hell, Ser, you work at a club where guys ogle you and you openly flirt right back! Have you ever wondered how that makes me feel? And now, there\'s this man that\'s been assigned as your damned bodyguard and he\'s going to be staying here twenty-four seven and I have no say so! I thought that we would make decisions together, but I guess that\'s not gonna happen!"



Another few seconds of silence.



"Stop being a prick! My father did this for my safety! I don\'t approve the manner in which he went about it but I have no choice. It\'s all said and done now and he\'ll be arriving within the hour. So get over it!" Her voice grew somewhat softer. "I love you and I\'m sorry that you\'re having trouble with this, but so am I. We\'ll get through this, but I\'m afraid with these crazy people sending me these mentally disturbing letters and then the bodies! If they\'re not afraid to kill indiscriminately, then they won\'t be afraid to come after me."



Silence echoed her emotional argument.



"But what about the guy that will be staying here? I\'ve already been ordered by your father\'s goons to be gone before this bodyguard arrives!" Sean spat. "I refuse to stand by while he stays in this house with you alone. Hell no! That\'s not gonna happen."



"You don\'t exactly have a say in the matter. You\'ll only get in the way and I will not put up with any harassment from you towards him! He\'s here for me, to watch and protect me. That\'s it; nothing more."



"Please," he scoffed, "I\'ve seen all the movies where shit like this happens. A female being threatened by an unknown person, a hot bodyguard hired to protect her and soon enough, the two of them are screwing like bunnies! And then, the poor boyfriend is left out in the cold like last week\'s trash! That\'s what will happen and you mark my words, Ser."



"Oh, please. This guy will probably be old, bald and fat and uglier than molded lasagna! Get real and get a grip!"



Outside the vampire smirked. It was time to make his grand entrance. Reaching out with his index finger he rang the doorbell. Patiently he waited while the voices hushed trying to erase all evidence of their verbal lashing.



Swinging the door open, Seras looked at Alucard. "Yes? May I help you?" The petite blond took in his strange attire. Red, wide brim hat, dark boots, gray Victorian suit and to round out the quirky ensemble was a dark red duster billowing gently in the breeze.



"Seras. I\'m your personally assigned protector sent by your father and Integra Hellsing." He inclined his head slightly at her showing his respect.



A male, brunette with dark green eyes came up behind Seras. "Who\'s this?" Sean jerked his head at the male standing on the doorstep.



Uncertain of how to proceed, she bit her lip and said, "Sean, this is..."



"Alucard. That\'s what you may call me."



"Sean, this is Alucard. Alucard, this is Sean." Meeting Sean\'s gaze, "Sean, Alucard is the bodyguard assigned to me."



"Hell, fuck, no! Old, bald, fat and ugly, huh? Bullshit! Ain\'t no way I\'m leaving you here with him."



Alucard glared at the ignorant fool. He was about to influence him to leave when Seras interrupted.



"You don\'t like it then get the hell out and don\'t come back! You don\'t own me! No one does. If you really cared for me, then you\'d understand and attempt a stab at patience. You know what, just go ahead and get your things and leave. Don\'t call, phone, write or stalk me. We\'re through. I\'m tired of all the arguments. We spend more time fighting and making up then actually coexisting and getting along. It\'s time to go our separate ways and you know it. You\'ve known it but didn\'t want to admit it." The blond resolutely crossed her arms and watched the shock spread across his face.



"Just like that? Two years and you\'re going to throw it all away the minute he shows up? You just got through telling me you loved me and that we\'d get through this? What happened to that, huh? What did I tell you? He\'s been here like five minutes and I\'m already last week\'s fix! You\'ll regret doing this, I promise you!"



Suddenly, Sean was shoved against the door frame. Alucard\'s figure towered over his. "Is that a threat? You touch her and I\'ll send you to hell myself! Are we clear on that?"



"Yeah. Crystal."



Guiltily, Seras\' shoulders slumped. "I know what I said, but what about what you said? I\'m not going to deny that I care deeply for you, love you even, but I\'ll be damned if I\'ll allow any man to treat me like a piece of meat, thinking he owns me. I\'m my own woman. I know my own mind and what\'s best for me. If you can\'t go along with this.....then maybe you should just stay away for a few days."



Alucard released his hold on Sean\'s shirt and stepped back. "Leave. Now." The menace flowed around the hunter blacker than the surrounding night. It\'s thickness convincingly forced the other man to retreat and go his own way. Alucard\'s eyes glared at the male\'s back through his glasses and he fought the urge to laugh at the man\'s misfortune. After he heard the way the male yelled at Seras his opinion had been formed and he thought the guy a total asshole.



Her lilting voice called him back. "Well, come on in and make yourself at home. Are you hungry?" She turned and squeaked. He was right behind her. Funny thing being, she\'d never heard him enter her house bringing in his things, nor did she hear the door close behind him. \'Odd\', she thought. He must be one of those very quiet moving guys. The ones that you never hear or see until, for some, it\'s too late. Good thing he was on her side!



"I\'ll eat later, but thanks for the offer."



Seras showed the vampire to the room down the hall from hers. "This is where you\'ll be staying."



The room was spaciously decorated in his favorite colors...black and red! He sat his bag on the bed and looked around. Cautiously, he opened the closet door. It just so happened to be a walk in closet that was more than large enough to accommodate his large frame. Expediently he put his things away and headed back to the living room where he saw Seras huddled up on the couch sipping what smelled like hot chocolate.



Eyeing him from head to toe, she admired his looks and build. He was one really, hot bodyguard. "So, Alucard, how\'d you get stuck on this joyride?" She knew he was familiar to her, only she didn\'t recall ever meeting him. From the moment she\'d opened her door this had been a troubling variable.



Sitting down across from her, the ebony haired vampire removed his hat and coat before easing down into her plush, overstuffed hunter green chair. "Not really sure how I managed it. Guess I\'m really popular with my employer and your father. Who knows?"



As he spoke, a familiar chord struck inside her head. His voice was so familiar, so comforting, and his hair....she vaguely remembered ebony strands blowing around his angular face, highlighting his handsome features. It had to be.....There\'s no way there could be two of them running loose. She couldn\'t be that lucky. Her eyes lit up in recognition.



Realization slapped her upside the head. Oh! I know where I know you! It was you the other night. You were the man who saved and rescued me from that jerk on the street! I\'ve been wanting to thank you ever since that night. Hell, you even brought me home and you didn\'t have to do that. I can\'t believe this!



Alucard\'s eyes met her blue ones. Should he deny it? She was supposed to have forgotten everything so what had happened? Damn. Life was full of problems today. Oh, well, he\'d just have to move on and hope he didn\'t do any irreparable damage. "Are you sure that it was me? This is a big city after all."



Her eyes brightly shining in the early stages of hero worship, "Aw, come on, admit it! Or were you on a mission and that\'s why you\'re being secretive and denying the whole thing? You can tell me. I\'ve got clearance, at least I think I do."



"I"m sorry, Seras. I\'m not allowed to discuss previous missions with anyone except my main superior, Integra. That\'s the way it must be for the safety of all people involved." Alucard pushed the envelop trying to pass as human. It was difficult for it\'d been at least five hundred years since his rebirth into the role of a creature of the night.



Chagrined, she bowed her head. "I apologize. You\'re right. I must not pry. Tell me about some of your hobbies, your adventures. Anything." Excitedly, she leaned forward, her smile so contagious and effervescent, her laughter seemed to easily bubble and flow from her. "I\'m curious to hear what kind of life you\'ve lived! You must have gone to many exotic places and met many wonderful people. Right?"



Her words were only too true. They struck a chord deep within... the chord of discontent, of loneliness. How easily she brought it to the surface in him. No one had ever achieved that before. She was already peeling back layers that it took Walter years to discover.



Inhaling deeply, the vampire crossed his arms behind his head and let his eyes wander in remembrance. "I\'ve met so many people in my lifetime that I can\'t even remember. But as a child, my parents were executed before my young eyes. I grew up a hardened cynic for every time I reached out for that brief moment of happiness, it was snatched away. After so long, I just gave up trying. Sad to say, but it\'s true. I have no other family than those I work for and work with. They\'re all I have. Seras, I\'m just like any other red blooded male. I\'ve seen things, done things that I\'m both proud and ashamed of. All these things are apart of me and always will be. I still have to do things that are harsh and cruel, but it\'s my job. Anyway, other than that, there\'s nothing to tell. I am as you see me. Nothing more, nothing less."



Chancing a glance at her face, he was sure he\'d see disgust and shock there, but he saw neither emotion on her lovely face. "I don\'t care what you\'ve done in the past. You saved me the other night and your actions then are what I\'m basing my opinion on. There\'s nothing you can say or do to change that."



Smiling, he asked her, "Why did that male, Sean, call you Ser?"



"It\'s just a little nickname that I\'ve had since a little girl. It\'s nothing important." Her cheeks flushed with the rising heat in her body while under his intense gaze. "When I was a little girl in school that\'s what all my friends called me and it stuck." Cocking her head, she shrugged casually.



Nodding his head, he plowed headfirst into familiar territory. "Seras, can you tell me about these threats you\'ve been getting? The more I know, the better prepared I\'ll be; the better chance I\'ll have at protecting you at all costs."



Crossing her legs underneath her slim figure she began to spill all the information he wanted. "First it was little things like letters being left on the doorstep. They\'d say things like,\'Daddy\'s little girl will soon breathe no more\', \'Enter the gates of hell on the devil\'s arm and your death will bring the truth to light.\' They kept saying things like these and then one day, the culprit started leaving mutilated animal corpses outside with my name carved into them. Just this week they\'ve stepped up their aggression by dropping off horribly disfigured human bodies! Do you realize how badly that stinks? On top of that, it makes me angry for those that have been killed for this insane, evil game they\'re playing! Those same people will never step foot in their homes again or see their families! How tragic!"



Tears welled in her deeply troubled eyes. Slowly, one by one, they trickled down her cheeks. Sadness, worry and even greater yet, fear, crashed down on top of her pressing the air from her lungs. Struggling to breathe, the petite girl hitched for breath, unable to get enough. She\'d tried so staunchly to pretend these threats meant nothing, but it seemed everything had finally caught up to her. "Alucard, do you think the other night was another attack on me?", she asked between hard fought for breaths.



Vampire that he was, he swiftly moved to her side. "I don\'t doubt it, but then again, I don\'t know that for sure." Lightly he took her chin between his thumb and index finger. Staring into her eyes, he willed her to breathe. He willed her to calm down and just breathe. "Seras, hear me. You will calm yourself. Breathe. There\'s no sense in becoming hysterical and you\'ll just make your breathing worse. Everything will be alright. I promise you on my own life. Nothing will happen to you, I swear to you here and now." His low, deep tone calmed her as no shot of whiskey could ever hope to achieve.



Her eyes widened in surprise. "Oh my God! How\'d you do that? One second I\'m completely off my rocker and I can\'t breathe, the next you\'re speaking and I\'m as calm as if I\'d just had half a bottle of whiskey. Alucard, you\'re even better than Xanax!" Seras held her hand to her chest tightly, relieved at the lack of stress that was no longer centered there. The man sitting beside her was nothing short of a miracle and she was ecstatic that he was here. "Thank you so much, Alucard, for what you\'ve done!" She grasped his hands, shocked by their icy temperature, and dropped them just as quickly. "You\'re so cold."



"That\'s the story of my life. Never stay in one place long enough to get warm." Came the puzzling statement.



"Would you like for me to turn the heat up?"



"No. I\'ll be fine."



Leaning her head on his shoulder, she asked him, "Alucard what\'s the worst thing you\'ve ever done?"



"Are you sure that\'s a story you want to hear?"



Raising her head from her broad, male pillow, "Yes. If you don\'t mind telling me."



"Alright, but you better go pour yourself a stout drink because you\'re really gonna need it after this!" Relief and anxiousness flowed in his veins. Finally, someone else to share a part of his historic life. He\'d have to reveal his true nature to her, but then he could influence her to forget him. If he couldn\'t, well, he\'d come to that fork in the road when it approached.



Seras rose at his behest to go get that drink. She came back and he smiled at what she held. She\'d brought no glasses but just a whole bottle of Jim Beam. "Think this will be calming enough?" She sat back down beside him. There was this huge feeling that she couldn\'t shake. It wasn\'t nerves. She couldn\'t really explain the emotion welling up inside.



"It\'s whiskey, isn\'t it?" He smirked in her direction. " Trust me, it\'ll be perfect. Okay, sit and get comfy because first, I have to show you something rather unbelievable. But what I allow you to see will make the unbelievable, believable. You have to promise me that you\'ll be calm, keep an open mind; just know that you\'ll be completely safe." Peering into her eyes with raw need, need for her to understand among other things, he waited for her answer.



"Alucard, I\'ve been meaning to ask you this, but why are you wearing sunglasses at night? Is it to keep up your reputation or something?"



"No. It has to deal with what I\'m going to show you. And I need your word that you won\'t act like a stereotypical female, frightened out of her wits, and run away screaming in hysterics."



Solemnly, "You have my word, Alucard. I\'ll do my best that I can promise. Just out of curiosity, is it that bad?"



Tugging down his shades momentarily, he revealed to her crimson eyes which were burning brightly. Then the shades were back in place as quick as they\'d been moved.



Seras gasped. "You\'re one of them?" Remembering her promise, she felt betrayed. She didn\'t flinch, but her body shook with trepidation. Would he finish what they started? What would he do? Apparently, the man who\'d rescued her the night before was only an ideal that rested in her head. He was no longer existent. That broke her heart for she had believed that the man beside her was the one. The one who\'d keep her safe, eliminating all threats.



"I am not one of those damned freaks! Get that in your head right now. Had I wanted to harm you, I had plenty of time and excuses. I\'ve watched you for so long, Seras, that I\'d never let any harm come to you. I\'d kill anyone who tried! Now as to the worst thing I\'ve ever done...it would\'ve been about fifty years before I became employed with the Hellsing family."



His head tilted to the side, seemingly caught in a moment of remembrance. All was quiet. Even the clocks dared not count the precious seconds, interrupting his recollection.



"There was a young village girl that I was close friends with and you might even say we had feelings for each other. Many months we saw one another and had little liaisons away from prying eyes. Unfortunately, we didn\'t escape prying eyes for long. Shortly after, Esabelle discovered she was carrying my child; she was worried and for good reason. The local villagers hated my presence because they thought I was evil. One of them had caught the two of us together and had gone to her father and three brothers, telling them of our deeds."



While I slept, they interrogated my love, and in their eyes she was already guilty and condemned a heretic, regardless of the fact that she was devout in her prayers and regularly attended church. None of it mattered to them! They took her out, tied her to a stake and disemboweled her; killing our child and her too. I felt her pain, the baby\'s pain. I felt it all. Worst of all, I heard her screaming my name and there wasn\'t a damned thing I could do to help her!"



Tears formed in his eyes at the recollection of his beloved. Had it really been so long since her death? With the telling of the next part, his red eyes glowed with an unholy light and he spoke with a slight, menacing growl.



"The very second the sun set, I rose and went to find those responsible for their deaths. One by one, I stuck each of her traitor family members on a pike; slicing them open and letting their entrails slide out with their organs and blood. I cared not for their shrieks of utter pain. I loved it! Their screams and curses gave me power. Truly, I enjoyed the torture I inflicted on those that killed a beautiful, peaceful woman. I dug my fangs into their necks and ripped the skin to shreds, forcing them to bleed out even faster. And her father, who didn\'t deserve the honor of being such to her, I saved the best for him. I beat him with a whip made of glass, metal and nails, which tore his back into bloody ribbons, then I tied him up naked behind a horse and drug him over the rough, rocky terrain. His screams filled the night and gave the wolves something to sing about for some time to come."



"And I didn\'t stop there either. I made him relive the last moments of his daughter\'s death before I finally allowed him to pass. It hurt me like hell, but it hurt him much worse than it did me. I thought of myself as her justice. Call me the hand of revenge, if you will. Finally, I tied him down to a bed of spikes. Using a large hammer, I pounded on every inch of his body until his form slid down to the very bottom of the spikes creating the bed. Once I was finished with him, I went into the village. There I drank my fill from the villagers, slaughtered them all and burnt the remains of the people and houses to the ground. After my revenge was completed, I left there never to return. Shortly, thereafter, I was captured and bound by Hellsing.



"I won\'t lie to you, Seras. I\'m a monster, but at the same time, sometimes I feel shame for what I did then- to the innocents. The justice I believe I sought in her name blinded me to the cries of the innocent. I refused to listen, to hear their pleas. They were all dead to me. Parts of it I will never regret, and most of it that cannot be forgiven." Shrugging, he said, "You wanted to know the worst thing I\'ve ever done. That\'s pretty much it that I can recall." Staring down at her, he figured that he\'d see fear, disgust, loathing, anything but what was there now.



Seras felt the pain in his soul through his dark, horrid, macabre story he told. Her soul wept for his. She wept for his lost love and child killed through others and their judgmental actions. Tears flowed so quickly she couldn\'t stop them. She couldn\'t imagine carrying the burden of this for all the long centuries. No wonder he felt so much pain and loneliness. It was no bigger surprise that he had this super hardened facade that he presented to those he met along the way. If she had her way, she\'d crack it wide open and leave him nothing to keep her out.



The two of them stared out her window into the night. Neither of them said a word for fear the uneasy silence would shatter. Seras was slowly coming to terms with his nature and though she was afraid, she\'d still cried for him. She had shed tears over his misery and pain. But what good was pain if it didn\'t make you stronger, right? For now, he intuitively knew that they were on shaky ground and hopefully, in the days to come the two of them would come to terms over the dark story uttered tonight.



He whispered thinking her asleep due to her quietness. "I wonder if you can accept me?" He heard her faint reply.



"If you can accept me then the least I can do is return the favor."



Alucard stretched. His absurdly long limbs relieving the tension that had settled there. Glancing out the window and seeing streaks of color spark over the horizon he wanted a bed more than anything, not the hard closet floor which awaited him.



As if reading his thoughts, the mysterious girl in his arms rose from her seat and tugged on his hand. Getting to his feet he followed the petite female down the hall into her room. He noticed that her bedroom was completely blocked off from any and all UV rays. Perfect.



"I can\'t sleep with a damn when the early morning light starts streaming in so I had adjustments made. Like it?" Her eyes twinkled in merriment.



"Bet I do." Locking the door, he joined her standing beside the door.



Gesturing at the huge bed Seras teased, "I\'ll share if you think you can behave yourself." A delicate brow arched with invitation. Her blue eyes widened as she watched his form disappear and then reappear on the bed, his tall, wiry form propped up on his right elbow.



"Are you coming or not?" His sunglasses vanished along with his duster. "Or do you think you\'ll have trouble keeping your hands to yourself?"



Mouth agape, a small hiss escaped her lips. "You\'re such a smart-ass. Anyone ever tell you that?"



"Constantly."



"No surprise there, then."



"Not a chance."



Determined to get the last word she said, "You stay on your side and me on mine. Got it?"



"If you say so...."



"I do. Now let\'s go to sleep. I\'m actually tired now. Not that staying up all night had anything to do with it," she admitted with a giggle.



Within moments, they both had calmed, feeling the first hint of sleep overtake them and before Seras could completely succumb....she took hold of Alucard\'s hand. Such an innocent thing. She never saw the small grin that accompanied her gesture. Her trust was childlike and he was undeserving of such trust. Maybe he could prove himself worthy. Maybe he could polish his armor and be the shining knight someone wanted him to be. Just maybe it was time to leave the tarnished knight in armor behind. Just maybe....







A/N: There\'s chapter two for you guys. I know it was a long read and I\'m not sure how long this story will continue. If any of you have any questions about this story, or remarks, feel free to email me if you want. Also, I\'m not certain how long it\'ll be before my next update. It depends on work, family and health, damn the last one! Anyway...have a great evening! Thanks for reading!! :)