Prologue
Only on the third day of his long-awaited return, Alucard began to get used to the complete remodeling of the mansion that took place after the vicious assault by Zorin and her forces thirty years ago. He was now omnipresent, but he tried not to abuse that ability around Integra and Seras – except when he used it for means of quick conveyance. Using it just for fun in order to give Seras an occasional scare did not amuse him as he thought it would. He felt that her power and abilities had grown to the point where their master-servant relationship had become little more than a sentimental token. Both of them embraced it to the fullest, of course, but their true feelings towards each other were much more complicated than that. They were mostly of familial nature yet with tiny hints of passionate interest, although neither Alucard nor Seras would ever consciously admit to that. He was glad to see her after thirty years of wandering around his own world and killing his other selves, and he was proud of how far she has come as a vampire. And she… she was just truly happy to finally reunite with that person… that being… that monster… who turned her life into what it was right now. Back then, on than fateful night, he had to kill her in order to give her a change to live again. Had he not done that, she would have been long gone now… and, probably, gone not just once, but twice: first as a human, and then as a ghoul, shot down by his silver bullet. She had never consciously realized how thankful she was that he was there on that night. That he was there just in time. And that he gave her a choice… She had never actually thanked him for that, but he knew how grateful she truly was. And she knew that he knew that… And now when he was finally back, all she felt was overwhelming joy and anticipation of what lied ahead…