"Oh, Pip," Seras sighed aloud to Pip. Her arms wrapped around herself as if remembering the feel of his arms around her while she stood before the open windows in the dark and deserted dancehall that no one used at the Hellsing Manor.

In her head she could easily see Pip. And sometimes he came out as her familiar. At her physical words, he'd begun to do just that and form as if from midair. Looking up at his face, Seras swept a piece of her unruly hair out of her eyes. Before her, Pip loomed. Not menacingly, though. He was the same as ever. Supporting and always there for her. So human. And as much as she loved him for it, she also couldn't help but wish he was sometimes more like her master.

"Mon Cheri, you worry yourself too much. You're not supposed to worry. That's for me and your master to do," Pip said, hugging her.

"I understand why Master should worry; he's my master. But why should you worry," Seras asked, hugging Pip back.

He didn't answer and she hadn't expected him to. They both knew why. But though she did love Pip, she knew, and he knew, it couldn't work. Not anymore at least. He was more dead then she even was. He lived as long as she lived. But she'd eaten him. He had no real physical body of his own anymore. He was empty now. Just another shadow among shadows. Waiting for company or the death of his host. Which just happened to be the draculina he loved. And they both knew that the time for him to constantly be in her head was soon coming to an end.

"I'm going to miss you," Seras muttered against his chest.

"And I you, Mon Cheri. Me too. Just promise not to forget about me," he lightly teased. She wouldn't forget about him and he knew it.

"Not funny, Pip."

"Okay, fine then. At least tell me when you've found a new man. Er…monster. I want to make sure he's good enough."

"Okay, fine. Will do, Capt'n," Seras replied, chuckling softly.

"Good. Now may I have this dance, my lady," Pip asked in his French accent, bowing with the offering of his hand out to her.

"There's no music, Pip," Seras softly giggled.

"And? That's not the question I asked," Pip replied, head down, still in his pose.

"Okay then," Seras answered, putting her small white hand in his large tanned one.

To anyone else looking at them, Seras would seem to be dancing alone. Swaying in the dark room all by herself to an imaginary song, spotlighted by the full moon looking in at her. Her black shadow following her every movement, just as gracefully and solitary. Well. She'd seem this way to anyone besides her master who lurked in the shadows in the farthest corner from the silvery light of the moon.

His bright red eyes easily hidden in the shadows surrounding him and her. They watched every movement and saw her 'invisible' partner standing before her as clearly as she herself did. His ears heard every word and soft swish of movement in the midnight darkness that seemed to almost consume everything, even the barely audible sound. But in his mind's eye, she didn't dance with only her lost love as company.

There around her danced long dead couples, twirling around along side her. As he'd watched her dancing movements, he'd found himself drawn back into a memory. He was seeing the occupants of a ball he'd been to many, many years before hand. The hall was changed to look like that time. It was glowing in a warm golden light from the candles and gas lamps. The many people there were dressed finely in their silks, velvets, and muslin. The men in their nice suits surrounded by all the pretty women within the room. All of them dressed in their pretty pink, blue, green, yellow, and violet dresses. All talking and laughing softly. But Alucard barley even noticed the figures his imagination had conjured up again. His eyes were only for the small, graceful figure gliding through the crowd of other couples with her 'partner'. Then, with one more twirl under his arm, the two were a little off to the side of the main crowd, stopped and the woman's head dropped against the man's chest as her shoulders slightly shook. Everything about the scene called for Alucard's attention and presence. Yet he resisted the urge to go to her, bidding his time.

Seras cried bloodied tears into Pip's chest as he held her, making soothing sounds and rubbing her back. He'd never be gone. Not completely. He'd always be right there whenever she needed him. She just couldn't have him there at all times though.

She felt him slowly leave her there though, knowing more so then her that she needed time to herself. But just the fact that he'd always, one way or another, be there, comforted her. So lifting her head up, she continued to sway in the moonlight. Dancing with her eyes closed, pretending he'd never left her. Dreaming she'd never had to drain him to begin with. And so she reconciled to dance, not to just dance, but to dance for him and his scorching memory. It was fiery and burning. Not very much in the painful way it had been. More like the slight warmth you get on your skin when sitting near a campfire. Or if you were Pip himself, when you walked away from the tent you'd just blown up.

And while she danced his dance, Pip stood before Alucard. Both looked at each other in a respectful light. Both tall but one almost inhumanly so while the other had a shadowy tinge to him.

"Take care of her."

The words that came from Pip's mouth sounded like a odd mixture of questioning, commanding, and simply stating.

"Wouldn't dream of not doing so," Alucard somberly replied with a soft nod.

"Thank you."

"No. Thank you, Mercenary."

With a nod of his own, Pip, once again, faded away to nothingness.

Looking out past the previously occupied space before him, Alucard watched his fledgling as she danced among the shadows alone. He'd told her to follow him through the darkness as far as she could and here she was dancing through it without so much as a helping hand from him, without so much as his lead. Where he'd left her along the path, he couldn't recall. Maybe it was from the very beginning. But no more. Slowly and quietly, Alucard closed the space between himself and his fledgling.

Seras had lost herself in the moment. Dancing through the night and memories. Watching as the past and present passed by in her head. It flowing through her mind's eye like a movie. But she was wrenched back to the exact moment she'd left behind. The cause of her startlement being the large, white-clad hand now holding onto her pale one. Leading her silently through a waltz through darkness.

So this one was a little random, but I read this one song fic on a totally different book and so I looked up the song in curiosity and the lyrics painted this great picture in my head for a PxSxA fanfic so I tried to write it down as close to what I pictured as possible.
Well hope you enjoyed it.
Don't forget to review and/or fav.

Peace! until next time.

-Lizz

p.s.:

Uh. I won't be able to update in a while. One reason being I have no internet. (I posted this on Mari's comp.)
Second reason being the F I have in Latin. So...Yeah. So really. Until next time! (whenever that'll be.)