Nymphadora Tonks had been in Hogsmeade the day of the massacre, therefore the Ministry of Magic had declared her unfit to serve in the investigation of the incident. She would be too emotionally attached for justice to be served to whoever had done such a deed. It had been hell to watch the three creatures destroy the city without any resistance; but worse was watching the blond woman, Heinkel, question the one witch before killing her.

Had that monster Heinkel not stopped to question the witch, Tonks would have been just as clueless as her peers as to what group was responsible for the massacre. The cross around the woman's neck and her insistence of "which God" the witch believed in led her to one obvious conclusion; these were agents of the Catholic or Anglican church sent to destroy the wizarding population.

She remembered learning about witch hunts in History of Magic classes from her time at Hogwarts; it was just hard to believe that the religious of the modern era would actually conduct witch hunts. It was hard to believe there were people worse than the Dark Lord, who could probably walk naked through Diagon Alley without being caught since he was not a concern anymore. But that fateful day in August made her believe that such people existed.

Her superiors at the Ministry had told her not to think about the accident and go on holiday for a few months, and that they would pay her expenses. What they didn't expect was for her trip to the French Riviera to turn in to a trip to Rome. She wanted answers, and obviously, the Ministry would see her if she remained in London.

The Vatican city-state was in itself not difficult to navigate. Her problem was that she didn't know who to speak with about the incident. After a week loitering near tourist attractions, changing her face each day as to not attract attention by any clergy that might notice her snooping, she was ready to return to France and have a peaceful remainder of her holiday. It seemed as if no one in the Vatican knew that the wizarding world existed.

That was until the previous day. She had found a café on the border with Rome and settled in for an espresso and biscuit when she overheard a long-haired priest asking about a modern Holy Crusade. Of course, there could be a million different meanings behind the priest's words, but there would be no harm in following him to find out exactly what he meant.

If it was what she believed, she could kill the man for orchestrating the massacre of so many innocent witches and wizards. Aurors knew the unforgivable curses, and the Ministry would most likely overlook the murder of someone worse than Lord Voldemort, if the long haired priest was somehow involved in the massacre.

Of course, she did not want to allow herself to feel pleasure in killing the man or torturing him like a Death Eater would. No, she wouldn't actually kill him herself, but she would alert the Ministry of her findings. They would send the proper people to deal with him.

So she followed him for a day, gleaning more and more substantial evidence that the man named Maxwell knew something about Hogsmeade. Unfortunately, nothing could prove his involvement; it just proved that he knew more of the magical world than his colleagues.

Only one step remained. She would have to question Maxwell personally.

Tonks had conjured herself a nun's habit and changed her face once again, to look more homely with sad brown eyes and dark hair pulled in to a severe bun at the nape of her neck. It was not her favorite disguise, but it was appropriate in the muggle world.

Closing her eyes as she stood outside of the priest's office, she cleared her mind of all doubt. This would be like any other day as an auror. He was bound to leave his office for lunch, and she would just happen to bump in to him.

oooooooo

Seras was bored, to say the least. Professors Snape and Pembroke had locked her in her dungeon room, and neither had thought to bring her blood packets. She had been imprisoned for at least a week.

She had tried to call to her master, but he only told her to use her powers and escape if that was what she wished. Seras countered that she did not want to be hunted by the wizards; she did not know if they could actually turn her heart to pure silver, and she did not want to find out.

Alucard only scoffed at her pitiful existence, but informed her he had more important business than breaking down a door. She would be on her own if she wanted to escape her captors.

Therefore, Seras waited in the dungeon cell without human contact. Even the Slytherins stopped coming by to gawk and giggle at her.

"Take all the points from Gryffindor that you want!" Hermione snapped at someone, most likely Snape, as she stomped toward the cell while Seras had been contemplating her escape. "She saved us from those Zombies and doesn't deserve this sort of treatment!"

Standing from her coffin, Seras walked to the door, looking through the peephole to confirm who was coming toward her. Hermione Granger was holding a blood packet in her left hand and her wand in her right. With a quick 'alohamora!' the lock fell to the ground, allowing Hermione to open the cell door.

"You shouldn't get in trouble for me." Seras smiled sheepishly at the teenager, stepping in to the candle-lit hallway. "I just don't want to cause any problems, so I was staying where the professors put me."

"We have the situation under control, Miss Granger." Professor Pembroke hissed, her wand pointed at Seras instead of the student. "Alucard has been ordered to stop the threat, and Professor Snape feels that one vampire is enough to accomplish the task." The wand moved to Hermione. "I suggest you return to your house; you ARE a prefect, after all."

"Fine," Hermione raised her wand, and Seras cringed at the thought of a mage-fight. She didn't know what one really looked like, but she had read books as a young girl that described such things…. But the wand was pointed at Seras' coffin. "but Seras is coming with me."

"Miss Granger!" Professor Pembroke snapped, shooting a stream of bright red light from her wand that singed Hermione's hair, but Hermione's concentration and grip on the floating coffin did not waver. "You will be expelled for this!"

Hermione snorted, following the coffin. "Oh, I haven't heard THAT before. Seras, grab your weapons and come with me."

The young witch was determined, Seras had to give her that much credit. Quickly, she scooped up the Harkonnen and its case which had been kept just outside her cell door, and walked behind Hermione up the stairs.

The two remained silent as they continued up the flights of stairs and past the portrait of the Fat Lady to the Gryffindor common room, where it seemed all of the students in the house were sitting, obviously waiting for Hermione to return.

Harry and Ron both hurried to her, offering hugs as she entered the room.

"I can't believe it worked." Ron chuckled, obviously relieved that Hermione had returned unharmed. "Snape must be furious."

Hermione shrugged, offering the blood packet to Seras. As the vampire drank, a group of Gryffindors gathered around, more interested in Seras than Hermione's story. "Professor Snape gave me the blood packet and watched me walk by twice without saying a word; Professor Pembroke had a fit when I demanded Seras come live in Gryffindor tower because of the incident."

"Did something more happen?" Seras questioned, still sucking the blood through the makeshift straw. "I know that Professor Flitwick was captured and there were ghouls in the area, but that is hardly cause for heightened security. I'm sure my master is just having fun as he searches for Father Anderson; he likes to do that."

Harry looked to Hermione, then to Ron, and back to Seras. "You mean you don't know?"

"Obviously." The word was flat as she crushed the empty blood packet in her fist. "I wouldn't ask if I knew."

"Well," Harry sighed, "it's a long story…"

"Let me tell it, I was there." Ron whispered, visibly distraught at whatever occurred inside the castle. His face was pale; his hands shaking. "Professor McGonagall called the male prefects and head boy to her office to talk about the duels happening between some of the sixth and seventh years. Right in the middle of the meeting, some funny looking woman came right in to the office, muttered some spell, and just cut McGonagall's head clean from her shoulders. The woman just smiled and then disappeared. You're not supposed to be able to apparate in or out of Hogwarts, and she did."

Seras was speechless.

"Thing is," Ron added, "Sprout and Snape were holding meetings at the same time about the same thing. Some blond man came in and shot Sprout between the eyes; but the man that came after Snape used a lot of that paper they found at Hogsmeade so Snape couldn't use magic, but he didn't kill him. Malfoy says that he didn't even try, but I don't believe anything that git says."

Anderson hadn't killed? Not only was she speechless, Seras was confused.

Harry was quiet, placing his hand upon Ron's shoulder. "We all think Snape is in league with this Iscariot group of yours."

"I don't." Hermione added. "Snape doesn't like Harry, but he wouldn't have other professors killed. I could believe Pembroke was involved, but I just can't see anyone that Dumbledore trusts being THIS terrible."

"Anyway, the entire house voted that you could protect the school better if you were here than locked in the Slytherins' dungeon. If you stay here, we'll make sure you get anything you need, even if it is a live victim."

"No, I don't want that…"Seras raised her hands as she spoke, looking between all the students gathered around her. They were looking for a guardian, and she had been their choice. Would the situation not be so dire, she would have been touched.

If the situation was not dire, she would still be in the basement of the Hellsing Manor.

"I'll do my best."

oooooooooo

Alucard smiled as he sat on the bench in the schoolyard just outside the small parish. He could see Anderson inside, along with the two nuns that he had yet to battle.

The Police Girl could deal with those two; he wanted Anderson.

Pulling a mobile from his coat pocket, Alucard dialed the only phone number he needed to know.

He heard a click from the other end of the line, and a muffled sound of amazement in the background.

"My true Master, I have found our Judas. I only await your orders."