Love Thy Master
A/N: AU. No Seras. The Earth has been destroyed and Hellsing as well as the other inhabitants must make the journey to the newly habitable moon. The cargo ship seems to be a death trap until they enter. What will the find inside as they make their journey to the place they will now call home?
I don't own Hellsing, I only own my new plethora of original characters. Some things about vampires in here may not be what you know, and there is a reason for that. I altered some things, but the basic Vampiric ways stay the same. In other matters, I have no idea what to call this chapter…so I'm going to give it a whirl and call this one…
Part 1: Fly Me to The Moon
A/N2: Um…I blame Frank Sinatra for this…but yeah, just read it!
Lucina twirled a strand of hair around between her fingers, scouting out a good point to drag her brooding master to. They needed somewhere to sleep and the ship was nearly full. She suddenly stopped and pointed to a near-empty area on one of the decks, populated by a few lone humans. Alucard finally broke her grip. She had felt his anger and expected him to hit her. He had done so before, once or twice…in the beginning. So she flinched, but no blow came.
"I know where I belong, and it is not with people," he snarled, walking away to set up his bedroll at a different, nearly empty area. All the beds and other decks were full. But Lucina wasn't complaining. This deck was the all-night food deck. She felt worried about her master. Now that Earth was destroyed, he seemed a little more high-strung. She padded silently over to where he was, in a depressed area that appeared to be a longue. Taking the five steps down into the area, she noticed that he was already asleep. She knew how he felt. That when you are what they are, no one will ever accept you. They're all just afraid that you'll bite their necks, drain all their blood. But they wouldn't. Not all vampires are scum. She laid her bag down quietly and propped it near his chest to create a pillow. Then she laid out her blanket and lay down next to him, brushing the no-life-king's hands with her back as she settled. He rustled a bit, but did not wake up. She sighed and faded into darkness that humans called sleep, that she called her memories.
Her dream was one of many memories that she had.
"I need you to stop Hellsing and Harker. I will stay and protect Mina." Lucina felt her anger flare.
"I shall not, Master." This got him angry, and he ordered her twice more to go protect his love. She refused both times. Her Master had quite enough of this refusal by his otherwise demure servant. The no-life king saw red and struck her. She flew back, hit the wall, and cracked the stone. He had picked her up by the hair.
"You are my Childe. It would be best you not forget that. If you would like to leave, take my blood and go, but do not defy me when you serve me!" Lucina grumbled and turned over, snuggling into her master, trying to forget the disturbing memory. She woke up thirty minutes later, hungry. Standing, she navigated the steps and around the bodies that littered the floor to the pale and glowing light of the kitchen. A woman taking a smoke was leaning against the counter when she waved. The lady put out her cigarette and brought herself towards Lucina, tucking a strand of pale blonde hair behind one pierced ear.
"It's awful late, hun. What can I get ya?" she asks and Lucina likes her accent. It seems to fit her. Her skin is tan, obviously from Southern summers of working and doing chores. She had blonde hair, straight as hay, that was pinned into a messy bun at the back of her head. Her eyes were green like the grass, and it all just seemed to fit her. Lucina liked this lady. Besides, she could cook, and while Lucina isn't exactly a member of the living, she rather enjoys the food. She ordered the woman's entire tray of strawberry cookies. The woman gave her a rather disapproving glance but gave them to her. She smiled her thanks and headed back to her spot. The cookies were tasty, and she saved one for her master. He did not like sweets or human food in general, but this one was really good and he would just have to try it.
She had managed it back to sleep and awoke hours later. It was still dark aboard the ship, but the lights were on, signaling artificial day. How could they live with that? Okay, well, the sun wasn't very kind to Lucina and her kind, but still! She stopped thinking when she noticed that her master's arms had come around her waist in the night. His head was bowed against hers. He had been stressing a lot lately, all his anger and rage was getting harder to hide. He was probably in the sleep of the dead. Stupid master, stressing himself out to this point! Suddenly the hand on her waist moved and so did his head.
"I heard that, Lucina," he growled and she is dying on the inside.
(Inner Lucina) "You're so stupid, me! You woke him up! The no-life-fucking-king! From the sleep of the dead! Oh, you're gonna get it now. He'll tie you to the front of the ship or something, or he won't eat the cookie you saved for him, or he'll yell at you until even he can't speak anymore, or-BREATHE! Okay, Lucina, you're his Childe. So just apologize, and hope it all blows over."
She sighed quietly. (Outer Lucina) "Sorry, Master. I just feel a little worried. You've been exhausting yourself by stressing ever since Earth was destroyed," she explains and he frowns deeper. She rolled to face him.
"Whatever do you mean?" he asks and she raises her hand to do something but stopped.
"Um, may I, master?" she asks and he nods slowly. She runs her thumb along a crease near his eyebrow.
"I've been your Childe almost as long as you have been the way you are. Whenever you get stressed out, you have a crease here. When you're angry, you have a crease on your nose from snarling. Whenever you're sad, you have two creases on your eyebrows, one for each because you're been crying. I don't want you to be stressed out, master. What is it that has you stressed out?" she asks, and he sighs quietly.
"The last hope I had to find any love was on that planet. Someone out there might have loved me, and now three-quarters of the population is dead. What if she was in that group?" he asks and Lucina smiles. She wraps her arms around her master's neck and hugs him. She ahs the perfect words to cheer him up.
"But I love you, master. You're my best friend, my teacher, my father, my partner in crime. If I didn't love you by now, then I would have taken your blood and left when you offered," she replied, trying to help. The no-life-king rolled his eyes and threw a crooked smirk in her direction, despite the tired way his muscles stretched. His face looked like it didn't recognize the muscle functions needed to form a smile, but it was close enough. She raised a brow at his sience and smirked.
"What, you don't love me back? I'm not your favorite Childe in the universe?" she asks with a pout and his eyes say it all. He does love her, like a father loves his child, like a friend, like a partner, like a teacher would his student. She could only smile at this and then they both stood, deciding that laying down was for those who actually need sleep.. She handed him the baggy, thankful for his upturn in mood. He seemed more relaxed now.
"What's this?" he asks, pulling out the cookie. She smiled.
"Try it. It's really good," she explains and he actually lifts the cookie to his lips and takes a small bite.
"It's not bad. It's not good, but it's not bad," was his reply. She smiled.
"I thought they were really good, and I bought the entire tray of cookies." Alucard raised his eyebrows.
"And where did the rest of the tray go?" he asks and she smiled nervously.
"Why, in my stomach, of course. Once I get some good old B- in me, they'll digest. The lady seemed awfully surprised when I asked her for them though," she replied and the no-life-king wanted to face-palm.
"You were turned at age eighteen. You look like you're twelve. No who on ea….Now what sane person would willingly give a twelve-year-old an entire tray of cookies?" he reasoned. She put a finger to her chin and pondered in thought.
"Hmm, guess you're right." Neither noticed that they had been drifting towards the food, but they figured it out when the man in front of them shouted something about the fact that someone had taken all the strawberry cookies. He was African American, but had very light skin. He had no hair, as a hairstyle choice, not because he had gone bald. A bandana was wrapped around his head and he had a goatee. He was also huge, almost as tall as her master, but as wide as the both of them standing next to each other. The woman noted Lucina and she had an anxious look as she waved.
"The little girl behind you bought all of them last night," she said. The man turned and she noted that his eyes were blue. She smiled.
"Hello sir." He grumbled, seemingly fuming at her.
"Don't 'hello, sir' me!" he looked up at her master. "What father let's his daughter buy 50 cookies in the middle of the night?" Who in the hell does he think he is? That bastard dared talk to her master like that. She grimaced and grabbed the man's arm, squeezing slightly the undead way, so she was really almost crushing his arm. He turned his eyes back on her and hers had narrowed to angry.
"Do not speak with that tone of voice to my master, got it?" she asks, her voice threatening enough to make him realize that if he said no, she'd kill him right there and so he nods hurriedly. She lets him go and smiles.
"He isn't my father. He's my master. We're on this ship with some friends of ours, and I was quite hungry last night. Master allows me to do what I want during the night, because I serve him during the day. The cookies looked so good, and I was hungry. SO I bought them, and ate them all. Well, all except one. I gave that one to master. He doesn't normally like sweets, but he said it wasn't bad," she went on in her slightly childish voice. The man raised a brow. He was probably confused at the way that she had switched so suddenly from murderous to childish.
"How old are you? I can't tell if you're twelve or twenty," he contemplates. She grins and brushes a strand of her hair behind her ear.
"I'm eighteen." And then her face turned sour when she heard what he was thinking. Oh god! Not that that wasn't a very arousing image, her master tying her up and having her call him master, it's just…going to bed with her master has to be the most-intimidating thing on the earth and she would surely die before she ever amounted to seducing her sire like that! She growled as the images in the human's mind progressed to some very interesting things. She couldn't take it anymore. Her face may have turned pink, but she disregarded that as she growled at the human. "And hell no! I do not do naughty things with my master! I saw that look on your face; don't try to deny you were thinking it." I could also hear your thoughts! She decided she shouldn't answer that.
"Hey, hey, no hostilities please! She did eat all the cookies, and so she's going to help me make some new ones, isn't that right?" she asks and Lucina smiles. She heads inside and wraps a bandana around her head to keep her hair back. Then she puts on an apron.
"It's been a while since I've cooked," she admits but is still smiling. Alucard is proud of his Childe for taking responsibility and doing peacefully…well, almost. Of course, she hadn't needed to lash out at that stupid human for spitting in his face, but when she did, he knew that she had meant what she said this morning. He stood by and observed while she cooked, and listened to the squabble of the females. How they go on the subject of himself, he had no idea. He was quite interested in what his Childe had to say about him. She was methodically beating a large mound of dough and talking to the blonde woman about her Master's personalities.
"With master it's always fight, fight, fight or yell, yell, yell. He has issues communicating well with people, but I don't mind it. He saved me from a horrible life. He gave me a room, a house, and people that he worked with." She paused to swipe her bangs back, a streak of flour trailing after her hand. She gave a small smile and her eyes softened. "These people became my friends, and…he became my friend. He may look scary, but he's a nice person." A smile blossomed over her face and she stopped kneading for a moment to stroke her wrist where he had given her his promise. "He's sweet and…caring and…kind behind all those scowls and lifeless faces," Lucina goes on and Alucard, if he could have blushed, probably would have. The other woman smirked.
"You go on like you worship the very ground he walks on," she replies and his Childe nods, beginning to knead the dough again. She looks up to Martha and Alucard can see the awe on the blonde woman's face at his Childe's committed nature.
"I do worship the very ground he stands on. I…don't deserve all the kindness he's shown to me. I was 4 when I was abandoned. I was 10 the first time I whored myself out to make money for food and clothes. I was 12 when we met. He didn't say anything, just wrapped me in his coat and picked me up and took me to his car. He held me and told me that no one would hurt me anymore. That he would be there to protect me, and I would never have to whore myself out again. Those words were magic to me. With the way I had grown up…I had always felt that I didn't deserve the clean clothes, the soft bed, and the labor I had to do to earn my way. I would gladly clean his boots with my tongue, kiss the ground at his feet, simply because he's given me more than I could ever ask for, more than I could ever dream of," she goes on, and Alucard frowns. Was that what his Childe, his Lucina, really felt? It was a good thing he had cloaked his presence, or she might not say things like that. Lucina stirred the dough in quick, rough twists of her hand.
"I'm sorry. Your master is a good man," the other lady says and Lucina laughs. Alucard sighs. Of course, someone was trying to give her their sympathy and she pushes it off with laughs. Sometimes, she's so stupid. He cocked his head as he listened to the next words out of her mouth.
"There's no need to be sorry. I'm happy. I could never be unhappy… not with Master Vladimir." Her eyes suddenly went wide as she realized something random. "Oh, I never told you my name, did I? I'm Lucy, Lucy Harker. My master's name is Vladimir. His friends from work always made fun of him and called him Dracula, because he's so pale. And since my last name is related to Johnathan Harker and Dracula had loved his wife, they always said it was inevitable, that we'd have little vampire children," she replies with a little more laughter. Alucard smiled too. She had given her truth, all of it was truth. Some people called her Lucy. His real name was Vladimir. Pip made dirty jokes about them and he was a vampire. She doesn't tell many lies, he likes that about her. What he doesn't like is the way she refuses help from anyone. The no-life-king has always wanted to be there for her. And he tried his best, bu his Childe didn't let him know certain things, and it got on his nerves. He got back tto their conversation, for fear that too many errant thoughts would reveal his presence.
The other woman smiled.
"It's nice to finally know your name, Lucy. I'm Martha Jennings," she replies and Lucina smiles at her. They rolled cookies and flattened them slightly into an almost square shape. These were different cookies. There was butterscotch, oatmeal, and something else. It smelled stomachable. The two ladies managed to make two batches within the hour. Then Martha's shift was over and another woman took over. The two ladies left to change out of their work clothes, so Alucard waited for them there. Lucina left the kitchen with Martha and they saw her master. Martha was wearing a jean button down with flowers on the shoulder, and blue jeans with work-boots. Very Southern, very Martha…from what he'd read into her mind. Lucina had changed into a rather fetching outfit.
She was now wearing her black, sleeveless vest and her black skinny jeans. Alucard hated skinny jeans, but he didn't mind them on an admirable female figure. Now, when she managed to talk him into skinny jeans when they killed a mall-full of freak chip vamps, he learned he hated them. Vampires were sexual creatures, and he's pretty sure his dick almost fell off because of the loss of circulation. Never again would he let her talk him into those tight jeans. His slacks were already tight. Straight-legged slacks, they hugged what needed to be hugged to make him seem a purely sexual creature. His pouting was interrupted when she suddenly hugged Martha.
"It was fun working with you today, Martha! You get some sleep. I might see if I can help tonight," she says and Martha smiles and looks to Alucard. He could feel her slightly possessive eyes. Could it be that she had already formed such a bond with his Childe that she dared challenge him for her?
"You have quite the good little servant there, Mr. Vladimir. You best take care of her before someone steals her away," she says with a slightly wagging finger. Alucard smiled and wrapped an arm around his Childe's shoulders.
"Lucina is a very good servant. I appreciate how much she does for me, and how she still helps others on top of that. I'm very proud of her for helping you today. Now that she doesn't have as much to do, she needs something to keep her occupied before she starts fretting like a mother hen. She tends to do that, so thank you for today," he says and Lucina blushes a little at her master's arm around her shoulder. Martha and her master shake hands and go their separate ways.
"She's a nice woman, I believe you made yourself a new friend," he says and Lucina smiles.
"I do hope so. She's kind and nice to me. Like you are." Her voice changed a little and the air around her was filled with dark intent. "Did you enjoy our conversation?" she asks and he suddenly realizes that she knew he was there, and she let them hear that. He frowns. Then that means he could ask his questions.
"Is that how you really feel about our arrangement?" he asks and she nods sharply.
"Yes. However, I know it's partly my pride talking. It's an excuse for me to be on my own, but I know that on my own, I'll never know what I know or who I know, and I'll never find someone who I can trust as much as the person who I gave my blood to. You're my master, it's my job to protect you with my life, and if I kept secrets, I would not be a very faithful servant to you." Her ears twitched under the little plastic prosthetics that Walter created. She frowned as she thought how she was not just a vampire. She was a vampire, AND a cat. He placed one gloved hand on her head and rubbed the area between her ears. She bowed her head and fought purring.
"You know, I think I am actually glad that I turned you," he says a few minutes later, as she buys two cookies and hands him one. He had meant by the fact that she truly cared for him like a true servant no matter what he said. Also that she was a true lady. Not the kind who conformed themselves to a man by demure and fearful means, but by the way she remained tall and proper and spoke her mind. It didn't hurt to have a sense of humor either, he thought, smirking. She smirked back from under his hand and he felt her ears twitch and saw the swish of her tail that was flicking back and forth, which meant she had a clever comeback. She treated her sense of humor as a game. If she could come up with a clever reply, she had caught her prey. She stood from his hand and cocked her head, smiling.
"Because I'm nice and buy you cookies, or because I'm a selfless, loving, good cook of a Childe?" she asks as she munches on her cookie. He chuckles silently at her self-praise before taking a bite of the cookie she had given him. It tastes amazing, and she is delighted to see her master slightly taken aback.
"These are actually…tasty," he says and she laughs and smiles.
"See? It's delicious. They are butterscotch oatmeal cookies. I think Martha called them oatmeal scotchies. And you thought all human food was disgusting. Guess who's wrong," she quips in a joking manner, eating her cookie. He rolled his eyes and pats her head.
"Calm down, kitty cat," he replies and she huffs angrily and crosses her arms, giving quite the pouty face. Suddenly he swings her over his shoulder.
"Ah! Master, put me down!" she squeals and he chuckles. "Where are you taking me?" she asks after she found out struggling did not work. He chuckled and adjusted her to a more comfortable position on his shoulder.
"I wanted the check out a place that you'd like." She just relaxed on his shoulder. Okay, he wasn't trying to kill her. When he set her down, they were outside a set of doors. The Bridge…he brought her to the bridge? She squealed in delight as they walked through the doors, but then she was rendered silent. Not only was the view beautiful, but the bridge was empty except for two other people. These two other people were people she did not want to see together. Enrico Maxwell was pressed up against the wall of the bridge and his bodyguard, the Iscariot Trump card himself, Alexander Anderson was standing behind him, pounding away into his body. Her master covered her eyes and the two quickly headed back out.
"Oh my god! I knew he liked guys. Just not little boys. There goes my little tommy glued to your crotch theory. No it's more like big Enrico glued to your crotch. Master, please tell me you did not know they were in there when you brought me here," she says and he smirks.
"I sensed their presence, but I did not know they were doing that. The bridge is soundproofed. I'll use that bit of information we just gathered the next time the Judas Priest wants to hurt things of mine," he says with a sigh and Lucina is still rubbing her eyes, attempting to get the image out of her head.
"Master, I have a question." He raises his brows and looks to his Childe. They have relocated to a higher bridge, this one was completely deserted. She wasn't looking at him, but out at the world they had left behind. A tear of blood slowly traced down her cheek.
"Is it okay to be sad? That we lost so many people? I mean, Ferguson, Sir Integra, all the Pip's men, and even most of the Iscariots. Is it okay to cry, even with what I am?" she asks, turning to look up at him. Alucard was a free vampire now. Even his heart ached. He reached for Lucina and pulled her close to him, tucking her head under his chin and hugging her.
"It is okay, my Childe. I will not hold your tears against you," he whispers as he clutches her close. She sobs into his chest, claws digging into his shoulders. In the light of the earth, he mended her sorrows with a hug, and she mended his heart. There was another reason he loved his Childe. She could mend him when no one else could. If only he felt for her like he had felt for Elisabetha, for Mina, and then he wouldn't have to spend eternity alone. He took the prosthetic cups off her ears and they twitched as she stood in his arms, still shaking but no longer crying. He smoothed one between his thumb and forefinger and she purred quietly.
"Good kitty," he murmured as he scratched behind her ear, his other hand scratching lightly down her back. She was full-on purring now, pressing her body towards him. There was no mistaking the fact tha she had the instincts of a cat. Even her movements in fighting held more feline grace than his own. Her tails swished gracefully and curled around his knee before flicking back.
"Thank you, Master," she whispers as she wipes her eyes and looks up at him. She had creases too, from crying and he frowned. He didn't like those creases on her ageless face. Without thinking, he stroked his thumb along the crease above her eyebrow and wishing he could smooth it. His Childe frowned.
"Master what are you-"
"Crease, above your eyebrows. You have them too," he says, deep in thought, not really bothering to mend the sentence properly as he glared at the crease that marred the face of his Childe. She brushed his hand away and finished getting the blood off her face, glad none of it got on her clothes. She turned back and the crease had disappeared, but her smile had come back as she beckoned him over to the wall of the bridge. He followed her command and leaned against the railing.
"Look at it, master. Is it hard to believe that the planet in front of us used to be our home? There is no color, no lush life, and no snow. There aren't even oceans. It's just a brown muck of waste. It makes me wonder, was it ever fit to habitable in the first place?" she wonders, staring out at their broken home. He placed a hand on her head.
"I don't know, Lucina. I may have lived for many years, but there are some questions even the oldest of men have no answers for," he replies and she leans into his shoulder. It is one of the times when they push their titles aside and share the human emotion of companionship, of the need to be close to another. The bridge door opens and suddenly Lucina is hugged. She notices who it is and gasps and hugs him back.
"Pip! You're okay! God, I thought you would die, with the wounds you had and-"He placed a finger against her lips, rather hugging her and spinning her around again before setting her down, grinning.
"Hush, ma Cherie. I'm all right. You von't lose ze hottest man alive just yet. Count, you're looking better," he notes as he spares a glance at her master. He smirks.
"Yes, Lucina helped dig me out of my rut. You're not so bad yourself, Captain. But should you be out with your condition? You suffered quite a few wounds," he goes on, and his eyes hold a bit of worry. Pip ropes an arm around the no-life-king's neck and gives him a noogie.
"Aw, you vere worried about me. How cute, Count!" he croons and Alucard growls but does not hurt him. The former Captain of the Wild Geese stepped back, getting the message. He joins them.
"I saw Walter. He iz looking better now, but zey say zat his left leg cannot be helped. He was not very happy about ze brace crutch zey gave him, but it was either zat or the wheelchair," Pip explains with a shrug and Lucina is hanging on every single word.
"Oh! And zey found Heinkel and Yumie in ze remains zis morning. The second ship is leaving soon, and zey are aboard it. Zo, have you seen anyone zat we might miss?" he asks and Lucina makes a sour face.
"I saw Alex with Enrico. It was so distasteful! How dare they fuck in public! I always knew that priest liked boys! Liar," she growled, her once harsh voice falling to an even harsher growl under her breath. Pip raised a brow.
"Wow, hardcore." That was all he could say, and Lucina smacked him lightly in his uninjured shoulder. He laughed and ruffled her hair, kissing her forehead.
"You missed me too, ma Cherie. Where are you guys staying? I'm getting transferred out of the infirmary tomorrow, and I'd like to stay with you," he explains and Lucina smiles.
"The longue area on the food deck. The one that stays open all night. I helped make some oatmeal butterscotch cookies, if there's any left. You should try one," she says and he smirks.
"You, a cook? Sveets, too? I thought all undead had a hatred for human food, especially sveets?" he asked and she smiled.
"Nope, I love sweets. I ate 49 out of a batch of 50 cookies. Master didn't really like them. The ones I made earlier though, I bought two of those. Master said they actually tasted good. I think I'm breaking his hatred," she quips with a smirk and the no-life-king rolls his eyes.
"You're getting ahead of yourself, Lucina," he warns and she sticks her tongue out. He makes a snipping action with his claws and she quickly sucks her tongue back into her mouth and pouts at him. Pip laughed.
"It's good to see zat you two have not changed much," he says and Lucina just smiled and hugs him again. Walter joins them then, with a clomp step and a dead drag. Lucina hugs him too.
"Walter, I missed you," she said and he smiles.
"I missed you as well," he says softly, kissing her temple. When he pulled back he was still smiling. She always found surprise at how a man his age could look so young with his smile. All those wrinkles seemed to disappear and he looked like he was twenty again. This was everyone who had survived the destruction of the Earth. This was what was left of Hellsing. Dracula, the Captain of France's best mercenaries, the Angel of Death, and the Childe of Dracula. They all migrated back to the longue and she bought everyone cookies.
There were little kids close by, grouped together and tossing little bits of packing peanuts up into the air like snow. Lucina smiled fondly. She loved the snow. She died in it. She made grand igloos with Pip out of it…and when it snowed, it was close to Christmas. She remembers a white Christmas that was very early in her turning. It was her first. She had always seen Alucard's saving of her as an act of god, because he saved her life and changed it forever, as Jesus must have done to his followers.
He changed the world and died for the sins of everyone. He gave her a chance at happiness, by allowing her to be damned. She became very devout right after she was turned, and her master hated it. He would catch her saying prayers before bed-time. As a street-whore, when she just wanted the man inside her to be out and give her money and food, her prayers of that like weren't answered. Now, she believed she had a fighting chance, that God could maybe hear her because it has always been said that the closer you are to god, the more open you are to demons. Well, she was a demon, so how close did that make her to god? She remembers…a large mass was held, for one entire, very large town in Romania. She lounged in one of the foggy stained glass windows, watching as they sang in tongue, Christmas songs that she had heard all her life. Then they took part in the Eucharist. She was enthralled as she listened.
"Jesus took a loaf of bread and broke it. He said, this bread is my body. Take and eat, and remember me. Then he blessed the wine and offered it to his disciples. This wine is my blood. Take and drink, and remember me." There were six rows of pews, and there were twelve men, two at the end of each row. One held forth a basket of broken bread, the other held forth a shimmering goblet of red wine. The one with the bread would say 'the body of Christ, broken for you,' and the one with the wine would hold forth his glass and say, 'the blood of Christ, shed for you,' and then the person would dip their bread in the goblet and eat it. She found her eyes filling with tears of blood.
"Master, isn't beautiful? God gave his son, and that son died, and by partaking in the Eucharist, it shows that he died for everyone. Anyone can partake of the bread and cup, but Master, what would happen if we creatures were to partake in the Eucharist?" she asked, turning her head to face him. He diverted his eyes, his body filling with annoyance. She knows that he was religious before his death, before his turning, and that it was a very tricky subject for him to discuss, but she never bothered to think about that before asking questions. He grits his teeth before speaking again, and his words were soft but filled with hatred and loneliness that chilled her bones and broke her undead heart.
"God turned his back on us creatures, Lucina. The devil created us, and even he was ashamed of our sins, so he condemned us to purgatory. To partake in the bread and cup would do neither of us good. We are embodied sin, sin too great for God or his son to ever forgive by giving themselves." She shook her head in memory of the sad thought and smiled sadly as she walked on. She knew her master had brought the memory to mind as well, since he had read her mind. Lucina hoped he remembered, and she wondered if his mind had changed since the 1400's. She was sure, though with age comes tenderness (perhaps in the skull but she withheld that for fear her master would elbow her for such geezer-like jokes about his age), that his stubbornness was keeping that tenderness at bay. Foolish, stubborn old man. He's more human than he gives himself credit for.
He just couldn't see that he was human on the inside, underneath all that pain and terribleness, could he? What did it matter? She could see it, she could feel and hear it in the way he moved and talked. It was in the base of those vivid bloody eyes, that soft smile that he only showed her.
"Stupid Master, you're human after all. But I'm not."
That night, they held a Christmas celebration. The ship was filled with old holiday music and each deck had its own celebrations of all different holidays in all the different rooms. Pip had been the one to hang mistletoe, and somehow the remaining Iscariots had been invited. Earlier today, the smaller ship had joined with theirs and Heinkel and Yumie had shown up to the celebration as well. Lucina had baked another batch of cookies. The ladies had not needed her help tonight, but would need it tomorrow. She was happy with that.
She did not make it out with some of the presents for Hellsing. She had bought Walter the latest weapon creation tool. She had bought Pip a new scarf, the color of his eyes. For Ferguson, she had bought a hand-etched dog-tag bracelet. For her master above her master, she had bought a new lighter in the shape of a gun, as well as a pack of the finest cigarillo's in the world with a bottle of scotch from her time. Though some had been destroyed, ironically, she had escaped with all of the gifts for the surviving peoples. The gift she had the most trouble with, however, was the gift she planned to give her master.
She had gone to every store, exhausted every possible outlet she had to figure out what would be good for him. She had wanted to get him something that would be perfect. Something that he would treasure, that he would use every day. This drove her to buying him something clothing related. She searched the clothing stores until she found something completely perfect. She was in a very fancy clothing store, with Pip. He was looking for something for the Christmas party. It was there, among the scattered clearance items, and she was surprised at its beauty. Her fingers had trembled as she picked up the perfect thing to get her master. The cravat was black and red, fine silk that he was accustomed to as a prince. There was an assortment of cravat pins near it. One was a heart, another a cross. All were complete gold. It's a good thing that she had been paid well as Dracula's servant. And Pip looked absolutely ravishing in the suit he had rented. Of course, it had been destroyed.
So she passed out the small boxes that she had stowed in her burlap sack of belongings. Walter was ecstatic, and then Pip saw the scarf. He tackled her and hugged her and kissed her cheeks and forehead.
"This is wonderful, ma Cherie! I love it! You are best friend I've ever had!" he croons, practically yells in her ear. She manages to push him off of her and sit back up, very blushy and glad he likes it. He looks very good in it, too. But the person who looks the best is her master. He admired the cravat and slowly removed his other one. She admired the column of his throat, the small scar there from an old war injury. He shrugged his jacket down his shoulders and sat back, head raised, eying her. He expected her to put it on him. She leaned into him, on her knees right between his legs, arms around his neck. fixing the new cravat into place, picking out the small golden cross pin and fastening it perfectly into the center. She smoothed the fabric and he smiled in thanks. She admired him. The cravat was beautiful on him, and it brought his eyes out. She could only notice, with embarrassment that could not be said in a blush, that he was staring at her. She quickly leaned back and sat in her place, tucking her legs behind her and looking away. That look in his eyes was completely predatory. If she could've blushed at the point, she would've. The embarrassing part was the fact that she had been staring back, merely inches from her master's face and lips. God, she was such a terrible servant! She swallowed her embarrassment and turned back to the party.
Her Master had given them all small trinkets, expensive things. Pip's was a small rosary. He had gotten Walter a new eyepiece, and his Childe, he had gotten her two rings on a chain. They weren't just any rings, though. She remembered these rings. Her lips had parted silently as her eyes filled with bloody tears she refused to shed. Crying in front of her master was a weakness that she tried, but failed, to stave off.
"As my Childe, Lucina, you will be made to dress in the colors of the Dracul line. You will treasure this ring, and until the day that you leave me, you will always wear it." She remembers the cobalt ring, with its large red stone set. The stone had flecks of black in it. But his ring was by far more gorgeous. Though similar, the ring was braided gold and cobalt, his stone carved into a square. The stone had a large black fleck in it, right in the center. In that was a gold D inlaid to the mined stone. His ring was one of them on the chain. He had sized her finger and had one created for her. But, the day they were separated, she had worn it into battle. She had searched hard for it after Morris had severed it's cord in an attempt to sever her head from her neck. She had searched during the night and in the wee hours of the morning, before the sun had become bright enough to move her pain past a small headache. She couldn't find it. She had gawked at her master as she eyed her ring.
'I found it wedged between two stones in the ground, on the walkway to the castle. My Childe, I pray that you will wear this again.' She had blushed at her master and slid the chain over her head. Then she smiled at her master. He smiled back, a soft smile that was not normally seen. That one he only shows her. To move on with the Christmas goodies, Walter had just given them all small detonators. Lucina pressed the button that shot out a tiny tazer. She had shocked her master and he had jumped. She couldn't help but laugh at that. Her master had gotten a wicked smirk on his face and had shocked her back. Instead of getting into a fight and starting a never-ending war, both had gotten a look in their eyes and aimed their tazers at Pip. The Frenchman got caught in the knee by Master and right above his crotch by Lucina. He trembled and growled at them, which sent the two immortals into quiet laughter.
Disregarding them, Pip huffed and went on with his gifts. Pip had decided that he was going to give everyone a proper Christmas kiss. This required them to hold down the no-life-king while Pip kissed his cheek. He had kissed Walter's cheek as well. He kissed both of her cheeks and then the corner of her mouth. After that, she shied away from the group, in much need of blood. She hadn't had anything to eat since she stepped foot on the ship near a weak ago. She was very, very hungry right now and not to mention very, very embarrassed. That kiss of his had come very close to being her first real kiss. She wished she could drain someone on this ship…
It turns out that she had also made it out with the bottle of Scotch and a few bottles of Bloodwine. She stood next to her master, drinking from her Bloodwine, enjoying the taste and how it settled her stomach. Her master sighed as well, licking his darkened lips. She admired the stern set of his jaw as he tilted the cup towards his lips, the way his Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed, the way his unconsciously licked his lips ever-so-often to leave no trace of the spiced life-giving substance behind. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye and she turned red, looking away. Now it was her turn to feel his stare burn into her body. She wouldn't deny that her heart was for her master. He gave her life without selling her body, gave her a job, a safe place for all eternity. And in return, she had given him every last thing he desired.
She'd killed many of his enemies, before Mina. Her many-times-great-grandson just happened to be in love with the reincarnation of her master's true-love. Lucina was thrown to the side throughout his adventures to capture her. And when he did, she heard the things he said, the things they did with her heightened hearing. She heard the creaks of the bed, the soft, sweet words, the sound of their bodies joining, their lips skimming each other's skin. And she felt abandoned. Regardless, she held off Helsing and his friends, confusing them on their way to stop her master from making love to the woman that deep down inside she wanted to be. She fought them all the way to the mansion, and even Jonathan Harker had called her Mina. She couldn't help it. She hissed and clawed right through his arm.
"Don't compare me to that vile wretch of a woman that dares take my master. I will not let you go to him. This is what he wants and you cannot have it." She was temperamental back then, suffering a broken heart that refused to mend. As a vampire, it was hard for a human to get to her. They would have to anticipate her move before she made it; but somehow, Van Helsing had managed to get ahold of her. He filled her with silver bullets and she could only lay there, writhing in agony as the silver tore through her. She remembered the biting pain, the way that the silver circulated through her undead veins. It was like fire burning up her insides, and it was reducing her to tears. She managed to forget the pain long enough to search for her master. Was he okay/ had she completely failed him yet? It was then that she saw her master, leaning on a stone cross, crying tears of blood while Jonathan stood over him. She remembers her heart aching as she struggled to move. She spit out the blood in her mouth, attempting to speak.
"Please, don't hurt my master! Please!" she had shouted, dragging herself over to him and placing herself in-between them. Jonathan had seemed taken aback, but he aimed his gun right down at her. She growled and leaned back, shielding her master with her body. Her sire was much too weak to move her, but he still attempted it.
"Foolish Lucina, get back!" She had turned and hissed at her sire, her own bloody tears dripping down her cheeks.
"No! I shall not! It is my job as your Childe to protect you, my prince. Allow me to do so one last time!" Then Jonathan Harker looked at her with confused eyes, lowering his gun only slightly.
"Why do you protect him? You don't have to be his anymore," he had whispered and she had launched to her feet, coughing up blood as she moved, getting in the face of her grandson.
"Because, he is my master. I want to be his. It's been my entire life; feeding him, clothing him, bathing him, killing for him. And while I am nearly gone, there is one thing I ask of you, all of you that side with Hellsing." They all turned to her and listened as the sun began to rise. She fell to her knees before them, but she did not bow her head and grovel. Her words were pled with pride, the pride of the Dracul.
"Do not kill my master. He is…he…he's such a kind man. Kill me if you have to, but spare him. Enslave me; use me in any way you want, as long as it guarantees his safety. As Lucina Harker, the Childe of Dracula, the tormenter of the night's right hand, I ask this of you!"
"H…H-Harker?" Jonathan had asked and she smirked.
"You seem surprised, Jonathan. You know, my father looked exactly like you. He was the bastard that gave me these ears. He threw me out when I was four! He tried to sell me to greedy bastards and tried to get me to fuck them for money! The only reason I let master steal your woman was because I got my revenge on the Harker line for making me what I am. I don't care if I'm undead or not, but the eighteen years of torture I had to endure, the eighteen long years of sex for food and a warm bed, the times I've had to cry myself to sleep in snowy alleyways and pray I don't die were because of that man and his foolery! My master saved my life. He gave me shelter, food, a job, a friend. And what did he ask for in return? Not one fucking thing! He simply had me do my job. He only asked that I do what is asked of me, and he has asked nothing that had been asked of me before. "
"Are you not betraying your master then, by defying his command for you to get out of the way?" Helsing asked, coming closer. She snarled at the man, but he had come closer anyways, standing only feet from her. She wobbled back to her feet.
"So what if I am! And may I burn in hell for it! Will I not anyways? When I am killed, will I not go to hell? As his Childe, it is my sworn duty to protect him. He may dislike it, but seeing as I am dead already; why not go out with a bang, as they say? Will you honor my words?" she asks Helsing. He is right in front of her now, the older man only a couple inches taller than her. His breath smelled of ale and German foods. His blood smelled pure and holy, and it made her throat burn.
"I shall." Her undead heart swelled and she had smiled in thanks.
"But Professor-"
"Peace, friend. I will capture the vampire. He will be the servant to Helsing until the Helsing line dies out. He will not be able to harm us. Say your goodbyes, Lucina," Helsing had whispered and she crumbled to her knees, her pain becoming more than she could bear. Her tail swished frantically and her ears were tilted down, drooping towards the sides of her head. That wasn't what she wanted…but at least her master was going to live.
"Master, I'm so sorry. You're hurt, and now you must be a slave for all of eternity. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I should've protected you better. I'll kill every last one of them master, I-" He stroked her cheek and tilted her chin up with a warm hand she'd never feel again.
"Lucina, stop." She had immediately frozen at her master's words, her body even stilling in its shakes. He placed a hand upon her head, stroking between her ears, murmuring softly, words in Russian for her, words of love and care. Her tears dripped down upon his clothes, the blood staining the white shirt he wore. She clutched at the cloth on his chest, burying her face in his chest, sobbing soundlessly.
"My Childe, my Lucina, my pet…I will go. But promise me that you will be good and guard the ruins for me," he says and she nods helplessly. Her master's lips meet her wrist and he bites softly, a reminder. The wound heals, leaving a crescent on her wrist that will not fade. They took him away, or tried to. She found that she could not give him up and attacked. They had him successfully binded before she could do anything. That's when Quincy Morris tackled her. The man had cut off her head as they rolled off the cliff. Dracula could only cry out in anger. His Childe! His pet! She remembered being dragged down into the sea by him, her head slowly sinking and then-
"Count, you naughty boy," Pip quipped and Alucard frowned at him.
"You do know zat you're standing under the mistletoe wiz your Childe, right?" he asks and sure enough, when the no-life-king looked up, there was a sprig of holly and berries above his head. He looked down at Lucina, and looked back at everyone else, who was now waiting for a kiss to happen between the two people who had lived the longest. She had finally come back to reality and was now very embarrassed. Her master was supposed to kiss her! How would she react? The older man was looking at her inquisitively, seeming a little embarrassed herself. Neither of them had moved, and the awkwardness between them was becoming too much to bear.
"Master, um…it would be fine if…if you had to kiss me. It is tradition, and I know you don't like to break tradition. It's okay, Master," she says quickly and quietly and Alucard looks to his Childe. He sighs and tilts her chin up, pressing his lips to hers in a soft kiss. He would have normally given a crude, quick kiss, but for some reason, his reason had left him. He felt that a crude kiss would hurt her feelings, or maybe it was just because if anyone messed with his master, he went insane. If anyone messed with his Childe, he went more than insane. He could not allow her to be disappointed with him. Her lips were soft and the Bloodwine that traced her lips broke all his awkwardness of the kiss. It had been a very long time since he had kissed a woman, but surely he hadn't forgotten.
His tongue traced her lips and she gasped silently, opening her lips to his tongue. Their tongues tentatively traced each other's and he held her tighter, bending her a bit to devour the Bloodwine in her mouth. She seemed all too happy to comply. He was not sure what this addicting quality of hers was, and why it made his blood sing. What was so special about his Child that it had him on edge? She made a small, quiet noise that would be soundless to the humans, but that sound made him want to push her down and take her like an animal. He wouldn't do that to her. After all, this was a mistletoe kiss. Despite the warm feeling in the pit of his stomach and the heat that was thawing his cold heart, this kiss meant nothing, right? He pulled back slowly and leaned back to stand. She placed a hand to her lips in a shaky manner, and she blushed.
She was shaking, and she placed a hand on the wall to keep her stance. She just kissed her master? 'Can anyone say 'holy shit I just kissed him. Please kill me?'' she asked herself. Her face went even darker red and she looked down at the floor. Why couldn't it open and swallow her up? Why'd he stop? Was she a bad kisser? It was her first. She didn't even know that kisses involved tongue. She didn't know how to truly respond, but she tried. Was he disgusted with her? Did he feel anything when he kissed her? She just turned and walked over to the couch, refusing to show any embarrassment.
"That's one way to take a first kiss," Pip said with a whistle and Alucard's eyes widened. He had taken his Childes' first kiss, in that sensory overload of a kiss? Oh God, no wonder she was so embarrassed. That was too much, too soon. He had probably even scared her a little. He watched her walk away as he party erupted back into full blast. She had taken her glass and sat down on the couch. He sighed and walked towards her. He may have just ruined the only normal relationship he had. They had resorted to silently drinking their Bloodwine AWAY from the mistletoe, watching as Pip tried to talk Heinkel and Yumie into stand under it with him, or with each other. His Childe seemed to sit as far away as possible without seeming afraid of him and he sighed. Lucina, he wanted to say, I'm sorry.
"I think I'll enjoy my wine on the bridge," he says instead, hoping she'll get the hint that he does want to talk with her, but he doesn't want everyone to be around while he shares his feelings. He can only speak his true feelings to her. She'd seen him cry, laugh, sing, smile, and even sleep. There was nothing about him that she as not privy to, except for the warm feeling in his old bones when they kissed. She nods quietly and stands with him, following him to the bridge they had stood on earlier that day. She sits against the wall, taking small sips out of her glass, watching as earth was growing even smaller and the asteroids lumbered slowly by.
"I am sorry," he says quietly and she shakes her head.
"Y-you don't need to say sorry, Master. You did not know. Even with my years of whoring, none of the men had ever kissed me. You had no way of knowing. But, I am still glad that it was you, and not one of them men that I gave my body to," she said quietly, scooting a little closer. She got a slightly curious, very confused look on her face. "Master, I always wondered. Why did you turn me? I was a common prostitute, a filthy whore with an unimportant name. But you just picked me up and took me to your carriage. You turned me, and gave me a home at Castle Dracul for no reason. Why?" she asks and he remembers the day that he found her clearly.
It was Christmas, actually. The snow was piled high in the streets and orphan boys with shovels were clearing the roads. A girl, 18 years old, was freezing to death in the snow. She had a thin coat, and he assumed that she had bought it with her little amount of money. She looked like Elisabetha, and he couldn't help wondering who she was. He felt worried though, that if he took another wife, that fate would rip her away. SO he decided that if he had her with him, even if she wasn't his wife, maybe the fates would spare him. This prompted the Impaler to walk up to her and wrap her in his cloak. He had picked her up and placed her in his carriage.
"I will take away all that ails you, no one will hurt you, not with what I can give you," he had said and then he had taken every ounce of her perfect blood before giving her just a bit of his. He had cleaned her body and brushed her hair. Then he had put her in a soft white dress. She had woken up, and looked at him. She had smiled at him.
"Thank you, my Master. You have given me strength. I had forgotten what it felt like." She seemed to be reminiscing as well.
"I at first thought that you were Elisabetha, but I was afraid," he admitted and she frowned, leaning on his shoulder. Her face burrowed into the soft fabric of his jacket as she listened. Then her lips moved against his shoulder.
"What were you afraid of?" she asks and he sighs, leaning his head against hers.
"I thought that if I took another woman as my wife that the fates would take her from me. And then I thought, if the woman I had turned and married was not Elisabetha, she would hate me. When you first talked to me, I knew you were not Elisabetha, and my hopes were crushed once again. However, you somehow managed to make me smile and make every dark situation bright. You were a friend, when I needed one, and I was so glad that I had you by my side. I was so glad that it sometimes moved my undead heart so much that I cried tears of joy. I knew that God had not completely turned his back on me every time I saw you, and I was truly happy that I had turned you and not some other person. You made life bearable, you still do. Even in the face of the collapse of our world, you somehow manage to smile, to laugh, to hug people and lift their spirits. Without you, all of us would probably be dead right now," he said and Lucina chuckled darkly. Alucard frowned at the change in his Childe's tone. He could feel her ideas. She was going to talk to him about the things they never discussed, how she felt about him turning her.
"I 'm glad you feel that way but you have no idea how many times I felt like crying. I had lost everything, you had taken everything from me, but I could never be angry. You had turned me into a person that had to kill to survive and I couldn't hate you. Because it was better than the life I had lived. You had given me so much that I hadn't deserved, and I hated it. I felt so happy and so angry at the same time. So I settled for being whatever you wanted me to be, striving as hard as I could to please you, to keep you happy, for fear that all the dark thoughts in my head would consume me. Working myself until I could barely move was all I could do to keep from crying." Alucard frowns and looks at her. Lucina…did she truly believe what she was saying? The look in her eyes said yes, she did. Alucard raised a hand to cup her cheek, smoothing his hand across the flesh there.
"I never should have forced immortality on you. I should have asked how you felt about it. But you could've come to me with this. I didn't have anyone to help me through all the things you just said. They happened to me as well, but the difference was that I was alone. I've known you for five hundred years. Anything that is on your mind, I expect you to tell me it. I value your opinion. You are almost as old as I am; you are experienced, older and stronger than any other I know. You are almost my equal," he replies, and his hand strokes down her cheek. She gulped.
"Master, I wanted to know…" she trailed off, looking down, wringing her hands. Then she tucked an errant strand of hair behind her human ear. He recognized that as a sign of when she got nervous. What was she going to say? "A-About that kiss…under the mistletoe, did…did you feel it too, that weird ache in your chest?" she asks and he pauses. She had felt the same ache that he had? They both felt something when they kissed the other…that meant that they felt something for each other, but what was it that they felt?
"I did," he says quietly and she smiles sweetly, her eyes soft and happy.
"Then I wasn't the only one. Master, I think it's because I like you…I think that's what it was. Does that mean you like me back?" she asks and he wonders. Was that what it was? Had he developed feelings for his Childe over the years? He had felt the same ache in his chest when he had taken her blood. Had it been since he changed her, then? He imagined the thought of her with Pip, or, God forbid, Walter. He felt anger surge up inside him at the thought of that. Then he imagined making her his queen…and he felt the ache in his chest. There was no mistaking. He did love his Childe. But not as a friend. He had been in love with her, since he first saw her. He turned to look at her and he gave a sweet smile before leaning in slowly. She had turned slightly pink but allowed her eyes to slide closed and leans closer. He makes a soft, approving noise as he strokes her cheek and kisses her. Her lips tasted sweet, and he felt more than an ache in his chest. She said she liked him. The love he had felt was not unrequited. Her hands slid into his hair and she kissed back sweetly, still tentatively. He wanted to smile at his scared Childe. However, this kiss wasn't as claiming as the other. It was open for her to cooperate in. His arms came around her waist and pulled her closer. His mind slipped into hers.
'The real reason I turned you, was because the second I saw you, I fell in love with you. I love you, Lucina Elisabeth Harker. I have always loved you, and I want you to be my no-life-queen.'
A/N: SO there's chapter one. It might be a bit before I post the next chapter. This is only half of what I have typed. And I promise Ill work on my other fictions, so there may just be a STICTS chapter 8 soon. Fingers crossed my loyal subjects! I'd tell you to watch out for the next chapter...but I don't know what I want to name is yet so...Zuretha Metal the OVERLORD, OUT!