A/N: I need to get this plot bunny out of my head. Ever since the Hellsing manga was released in the US I've been a fan. I only rediscovered my love for it recently. Though I've seen the original and ova anime, this story is primarily influenced by the manga. The first of many segments, I give you Chapter 1: Twelve.
Disclaimer: I do not own Hellsing, or anything affiliated with it
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Following Every Footstep
Cosmic Dragora
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Chapter One: Twelve
She was 12 years old. Hardly the age to be watching her father take his last breath. Hardly the age to be taking on the head role of an organization. Hardly the age to be running for her life. Hardly the age to come into control of a vampire so ancient, so powerful, that all other creatures of the night trembled in fear.
But here she was, Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing, barely 12 years old, and head of the Hellsing Organization. She had never anticipated this day to happen so suddenly, but who could say they had. Walter, of course, was the most surprised when he returned home to find Sir Hellsing dead, but Alucard very much alive. Or as alive as a vampire could possibly be. "Ah, Alucard." He adjusted his monocle, as he often did when he wanted a clear look at something, "I trust you had a pleasant sleep?"
"The best I'd had in ages." The vampire replied in his low, frightening way. She was not used to it. It was all so sudden. She had gone from child to Master in the blink of an eye, and God knew she wasn't ready for all of this.
She knew she had to be, as did everyone else.
It had only been a day, and that one day had been treacherously long. "What shall I do with these foul corpses, Master?" Her second order to her new servant was that of disposal.
"Eliminate them. I don't want to see these treacherous fools buried beneath Hellsing's proud soil." She had thought of her father, and how his plot had hardly been filled a few days prior.
The vampire chuckled, revealing his gleaming white teeth, sharp as a needle, "As you wish, my master. It's been many years. Too many." He eyed the unmoving men hungrily, "A snack might do. It might do well, indeed." And thus, Integra sat unmoved as her newfound servant devoured each and every corpse—clothing, guns, and all—in a manner most unpleasant. There was hardly a drop of blood left when he was through. Full enough, but hardly satisfied. He returned and bowed low, requesting to help with her arm, to which she obliged. The bullet had passed through, grazed the bone, but blood ran free and coated her side. Had she not remembered her father's words, "Vampire teeth are the anti-coagulant, Vampire saliva is the coagulant," perhaps watching him lower his open mouth to her wound would have been more frightening than it already was. She shivered involuntarily as he snaked his tongue over the broken flesh, vowing to never get used to such an unsettling feeling.
And there they were. She was clean, and he was awake. "Alucard." She repeated his name, to test it and find familiarity.
"Yes, my master?" She was young, unsure. So childish in her school uniform, so naïve in the way she held herself in the midst of a vampire. Yet she was the daughter of Sir Arthur Hellsing. Her blood smelled fresh and pure. Full of promise and pride. It was a delectable thing, and such a blessing to be his first meal in 20 years. So sweet and smooth, untainted and fresh.
"There are others. Find them and take care of them."
"Yes, my master." He dissolved into the shadows, leaving behind nothing but a Cheshire cat grin and an unpleasant cackle that resonated off the cold dungeon walls. She had barely made her way out of the place before he appeared before her, and that is where he stayed until Walter returned.
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She wasn't sure if she liked him. He was arrogant and hurtful. He took great pleasure in pointing out her flaws, "The truth is what hurts the most, doesn't it, Master?" He would grin his haughty grin, and she would command him to be silent.
"I am your master, am I not? Obey me, and be quiet!" She would shout at him, numerous times.
"Shouting is so unladylike." He would say, then speak no more. He was right, of course. She was hardly in the position to be flying off her handle like that. Not anymore. She was now head of the Hellsing Organization. She had to compose herself as such. This, he would tell her. Not outright, but in his sarcastic, demeaning manner.
He saw her potential, yes, but also saw her faults. Someone who wore their heart on their sleeve would not do. Someone with a carefree laugh and a smile on their face would not do. Someone lacking confidence and drive would not do. The bridge between childhood and adulthood would be a short one for Integra, this he knew. In the end it would suit her better. It would suit everyone better. It would suit him the best.
"Don't you think you're being harsh on her, Alucard?" Walter said one day as he prepared her afternoon tea, "She is but a child, you know?" The vampire paused and contemplated his answer. There was a strong young woman beneath that veil of youth. She merely needed to shed it.
"Perhaps, Walter." His red eyes traveled up and met the Englishman's, "Though we both know that a child has no place amongst adults."
Walter understood what the vampire meant. She would be tested and tried as an adult, as dictated since her father's death. It was at that moment that Walter fully saw Alucard's intentions. "I still do not enjoy the way you go about teaching her." Walter told him, "It is unnecessary."
"Being kind is unnecessary."
"Well, if that is how you truly feel." The butler grinned as he picked up the tray laden with scones and tea, "I shall not forgive you if you upset Miss Integra, as I'm sure you understand." The vampire smirked,
"Indeed I do."
Integra's studies continued at a private school, as home schooling was no longer an option. "Your education is necessary, Miss Integra." Walter responded to her disproval. "It is not right that a girl of your age waste her mind away." She didn't like it. Ever since she could remember she had been home schooled. Taught by her father all she needed to know about the supernatural and running an organization. She knew how to communicate with people—a skill often lacking in those home schooled—but merely in a businesslike manner. As Walter had told her, she did not understand how to interact with those her own age—much less her own gender. Under her breath she muttered that she would never need to do that in any situation in her life. Only the vampire heard.
With all of these sudden life-changing happenings, it was only natural that she would break down. But, no, the girl willed herself to hold her head high. To continue as if nothing bothered her. The vampire knew better.
"How was school today, Master?" he asked as he materialized next to her desk littered with schoolwork and textbooks.
"Dreadful." She replied curtly and continued her mathematics. As was his habit, he hovered over her until she became self-conscious and asked him what he found so fascinating about her homework.
"Nothing, Master." With this he trailed off, and left her in silence. For a moment she felt a sudden loneliness and wished he'd stayed. Perhaps if he'd pried a little more to get her to talk—but no matter. The moment passed, and her "dreadful" day at school was pushed aside and forgotten.
/
It was shortly after Walter returned when he began requesting blood. "I am thirsty." He said. She called for her butler and they devised a plan. Medical blood.
"It will keep him out of trouble." Walter assured her. Alucard remained silent on the matter, but was obviously quite happy to satisfy his bloodlust after so long.
"Vampires are such strange creatures." Integra remarked as she watched him drink his fill. The vampire laughed, and in the chilling dungeon halls, it was quite an unnerving sight.
She vowed to never trust the vampire. Never like him. Never give him an ounce of mercy. After all, vampires were trash. That is what her father had taught her. Alucard was nothing to her. Nothing but a servant. It wasn't long before paranoia set in. She felt he was always watching her. Staring with those bloodshot eyes, and fanged grin. She'd never known such fear since her uncle shot her she watched his dried corpse animate itself. Late at night she would stare at the ceiling, and imagine the moving shadows were him. Waiting for her to sleep so that he might feast on her neck.
She became cranky. She questioned everything Alucard did. She made him stay in plain view more often than she did originally, forcing him to sit in her eyesight when she was working. He did everything without question, and only his wry smile.
Walter was the first to comment. "You aren't sleeping well, my lady?"
"I'm sleeping just fine."
"Have the latest events finally caught up to you?"
"Perhaps."
"I'll brew a special tea. Never fear, you'll feel better in no time." She did not want to sleep. Not with the vampire around. Moving through the estate on his own free will. She called him forth after Walter had retired for the night.
"Yes, Master?" The dim light shone off of his red glasses
"My sleeping quarters are off limits." She stated.
"They were not before?" He cocked his head childishly
"They always were." She glowered, "But I'm making sure you know for certain." Alucard studied the girl, and realizing just then how exhausted she looked, smirked and asked her,
"Do you worry that I stalk you at night?" Her eyes narrowed and she seemed to shrink away from him, "You are my Master. I have no intentions of harming you. You know this."
"My father taught me never to trust the likes of you."
"He was a smart man."
"Yes. He was." There was a moment of silence in which she sipped her tea cautiously, and Alucard merely watched, without grin or remark.
"I have never hidden in the shadows around you. Not yet." He started, "I understand you cannot sense when I'm around. Not yet." She looked at him warily, but he did not smile, "I am not the sort of vampire that you think I am."
"Oh?"
"Indeed." Here he did grin, "I am much worse." He melted into the floor, with a resolute "Good night" that could be heard from all corners of the room.
She did not sleep well for many weeks.
/
She really didn't like him. This vampire she controlled. He lived to embarrass her. He did as he wished when she wasn't there to stop him. She was his master. Shouldn't he behave more like a slave? He did what she asked though—if only grudgingly. Because of this, she felt safer. Stronger. He was a weapon. She was the trigger.
But his personality she could not stand. His kind. Vampires. Deceitful, sex-driven, powerful creatures that were not to be taken lightly. She noted that sunlight did not affect him, as he often appeared in the sunroom when she was reading. Garlic did not affect him either, or else why would he ever materialize in the kitchens and harass her cooks? Garlic was often used, and hung from the ceilings in the pantry. No vampire would stand being around that. But he could. A stake through the heart? She did not know. He was still so new to her.
"Why does the sun not harm you, vampire?" She inquired
"It is how your family built me." He said, then paused and added, "Though it did hurt at one time."
"Garlic?"
"The same."
"Is there any way to kill you?" The vampire chuckled at that,
"Are you planning to have your own servant murdered, Master?" Her face showed nothing, and with a shrug he replied in earnest, "I believe that I can be killed, though I shall not go down without a fight." The vampire, if he were privy to his own weaknesses, would not indulge her in them. Even when she ordered an answer, his responses seemed cryptic.
/
A vampire had been spotted in a town not far away. It was Hellsing's duty to take it out and dispel the evidence. Integra had seen this done many times in her past, and knew of the correct procedure to follow. She had never personally attended a killing, but now, as head, she would have to move to the battlegrounds and assume her position as leader of Hellsing.
She was nervous, that much was true. What if she made an error? She spoke with the captain of Hellsing's firearms unit, and they reassured her it was a routine vampire. Nothing out of the ordinary. It was then that Alucard made his appearance.
"Send me out to take care of the vampire." He said. Integra looked around for objections.
"Then what of my men?"
"If they want to go they can take out the ghouls." This won jeers from the crowd, but only a few. They were still not used to a vampire among their ranks. "You only need to send me."
"I don't think you could take on a vampire and his army of ghouls by yourself." She replied, "You should know how strong they are."
"I do."
She made her decision. She'd send him along by himself while the backup team camped by just in case something were to go wrong. "Search them out. Kill them all." Were her orders. Cleanup crew hung back, as they always did. She was to go to the police barricade, if there was one. If not, then she would stay back. Her driver knew what to do.
"It's not right for such a young girl to be out on these missions." He said.
The threat was taken care of in no time at all. Behind barricaded walls, Integra was merely scolded for being so young, "and a girl no less" until Alucard came back. "Master." He greeted her
"Alucard." She acknowledged him, causing those around her to gasp at this sudden intrusion. "Give me a report." Blood coated his teeth as he smiled, and responded,
"No survivors." He told her where the bodies lay, and cleanup crew was sent out. The police chief couldn't believe the events that had taken place that night. A young girl who commanded a vampire that killed other vampires? Preposterous.
She found that she could take no more of these surroundings, much less the bloody stench that resonated off of Alucard's jacket. She hailed her driver, and she went home, dreading her very first bout of paperwork. As she looked up at the moon, a group of bats clouded the scene. The vampire was satisfied.