Author's note: I had originally intended, after my previous fic, to never upload anything until it was completed. I'm going back on this now. But don't worry, the creative juices are flowing and I actually made an outline this time! Enjoy.
Disclaimer: I have no real artistic talent. As such, I've never made any anime, Hellsing for example, nor have I written any music, say, H.I.M.'s song "The Funeral of Hearts." I'm not even a good enough writer to make money off this stuff…
Solar Eclipse
Chapter 1
Love's the funeral of hearts
And an ode for cruelty
When angels cry blood
On flowers of evil in bloom
The funeral of hearts
And a plea for mercy
When love is a gun
Separating me from you
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"The decision is yours."
Sir Integra Wingates Hellsing allowed the ghost of a smile to crease her lips. After a long moment, she opened her mouth to reply to her vampire servant, Alucard, to tell him she was not nearly that desperate.
Before she could speak, however, the greedy light in his eyes disappeared, and he turned his head toward the door of her cell before sinking into the floor. She heard the sound of a key in the lock, then the door swung open wide enough to admit a man before closing again with a resounding boom.
The man in question was tall, just past middle age, with a full head of gray hair. He wore a business suit and carried himself with an air of nobility.
Integra raised her ice-blue eyes to him, but did not stand up or in any other way acknowledge his presence. He stopped before a puddle of wine and shattered glass on the floor—a remnant of her aborted conversation with her servant.
"You do not like this vintage, Miss Hellsing?"
She narrowed her eyes slightly. "Sir Irons. I presume you are here to deliver the Table's decision."
Sir Irons gave her a rather cold smile. "Indeed." He drew a piece of paper from his breast pocket and unfolded it. "On this day, the 23rd of August, in the Year of Our Lord ----, the Round Table council has determined, by a vote of 9 to 2, Sir Integra Wingates Hellsing stands convicted of gravely overstepping her duties and jurisdiction in ordering an armed assault on London Tower. She shall bear the charges for all losses, both personnel and property, which resulted from this attack.
"Furthermore, she stands convicted, by a vote of 10 to 1, of criminal incompetence regarding the aforementioned offensive and other previously occurring initiatives, for which she is sentenced to 15 years imprisonment and a £10.000 fine."
Integra leaned back. "Of course, had I not sent my troops to deal with the freaks, I would instead be charged with neglecting my duties and endangering the Queen through inaction." Her lips twisted into a bitter smile. "What a cunning setup…"
Sir Irons continued, cutting off her comments. "These punishments are to be carried out, effective immediately, by order of the Knights of the Round Table, under the authority of Her Majesty, the Queen, and with the benediction of the Almighty God." He folded the paper up imperiously and returned it to his pocket. "Now, don't have too much fun," he added with a cruel smile as he turned and left the cell.
After the door had clanged shut, Integra closed her eyes and allowed her head to fall back against the wall in an uncharacteristic display of weakness.
She sat like that for a long moment, then straightened up quickly as soon as she felt the chill that always accompanied her servant's arrival. A patch of wall next to her turned dark, and Alucard stepped out of the wall, the darkness clinging to and rejoining him as he stood again before her.
His characteristic smirk was gone, replaced by a serious expression, a rarity for him. "These human politics make no sense to me."
Integra's hands clenched into fists. "Those fools think they no longer need the Hellsing Organization simply because Incognito has been destroyed and the FREAK chips are no longer in mass production. Those short-sighted, patriarchal, incompetent bastards think they can do what my family has spent a century learning to do." She passed a hand over her face, regaining her composure. "So, in their attempts to grab more power for themselves, they use me and throw me aside."
Alucard drew up a chair and sat facing her, feet crossed at the ankles before him. She found herself silently grateful for his being there to listen, but clamped down on the thought so he wouldn't hear it.
"I don't doubt in a year or two they'll be back to see me, needing my help. Wanting to use me again…" Her jaw clenched. She could envision it, how they'd hold their hats before them, how they'd speak in false tones of respect and apology—it made her blood boil. "Never," she murmured. "They have refused my help now, and it will not be extended again. These fools do not deserve my help, not after this betrayal."
Alucard's carnivorous grin returned to his face. "Wonderful, Master! Tell me, are you considering my offer?"
Integra snorted softly. "And what would that accomplish? I could become one of my family's mortal enemies?" She sighed. "I have no desire to live forever. I'd get bored, for heaven's sake." She gave him a slight smile. "No, Alucard, it is not worth it, not to me."
The grin disappeared from his face, and she was surprised to see it replaced by a troubled expression.
Why, I wonder, is he so interested in making me a vampire? She put on a stern face. "Speak your mind, Alucard."
He glanced at her, several emotions flitting across his face too fast to discern before he settled on a wry smile, broad enough to show his fangs. He tipped his head back, obscuring his eyes behind the glare on his sunglasses, and began to speak with the air of one telling a story.
"As you are well aware, I have served your family for several generations now. I have always been impressed with your line's extraordinary courage and willpower. Such a wonderful trait to have in a master…" He trailed off for a moment, but quickly regained his focus. He sat forward, looking directly at her, his smile disappearing. "But you, Integra—you are by far the strongest woman I have ever met, and perhaps the strongest human. And I have lived a long time."
Flattery? What does he hope to accomplish?
He seemed to notice her cynical attitude, for he sighed softly and lowered his gaze to the floor. "What I am saying is that I don't want your next-of-kin to become my master. I don't want to watch you grow old and feeble." His lips twisted slightly. "Hell, I can't imagine an existence without you any more."
He stood and turned slightly away from her, bowing his head. "What I really want is for you to come with me. Live with me forever, until this world sinks beneath the ocean. I know," he raised his hand, fingers half-curled, and looked down at the palm of his glove, "I know I'll never find your equal. You are what I want." He turned his head to look at her, thoroughly serious. "But the decision is yours."
After a moment, he sat down again, apparently lost in his thoughts, and Integra realized her mouth was open. She had to make a conscious effort to close it.
Her thoughts whirled through her head so fast she nearly felt dizzy. She had never realized her servant felt such deep emotion, but she did not doubt his sincerity; their bond was enough to assure her he was not deceiving her. Of course, this confession could explain many things he'd said and done in the past, things that hadn't made sense at the time. But she had truly believed her servant was soulless, incapable of love and caring.
And then there was the matter of his offer. She did find it alluring, more so since his confession, since the hope of meaningful companionship had entered her heart. She had refused to admit, especially to herself, how alone, how lonely she had been. She was suddenly struck by the irony of herself and Alucard, both suffering loneliness in silence, both wanting to reach out to the other, but each too afraid of the consequences should the other not feel the same.
She shook her head in an attempt to clear it. She had long entertained the notion of having Alucard bite her and mix his blood with hers, of the power and longevity it would afford her. But she had never considered it seriously, not like she was now. She had been too concerned with her noble blood, with her mission…so much for all that. She had been prevented from doing her family's longtime work of destroying undead creatures, and her good name had been tarnished, left in ruin by deceit and betrayal.
Really, she thought bitterly, is there anything left for me as a human?
She felt she stood at the edge of a precipice, one moment intending to jump, the next afraid to do so. She knew she shouldn't do it, but she no longer cared. Her fellow Round Table Knights had seen to that.
But before she decided, she had to know one thing. "Alucard?" she said, keeping her indecision out of her voice.
He came out of his reverie. "Yes, Master?"
"Do you ever regret becoming a vampire? Do you ever wish you were human again?"
Alucard regarded her steadily. "Occasionally I have felt regret, though certainly not often. But I have never wished to be just human again." He said this last sentence emphatically. The same greedy light re-entered his eyes and he opened his mouth to say something, but she cut him off.
"Alucard, I wish for you to make me a vampire. That is an order." She half-expected him to leap immediately upon her, but there was instead a brief moment of silence.
"You are quite sure this is what you want?" he said, his voice deep and intense.
She would have sworn she could see strange shadows moving on the edges of her sight, could hear almost-voices muttering behind her. She paused for an instant, realizing that this was certainly the most important decision she would ever make. "Yes," she said firmly.
He stepped slowly toward her, and she stood up. As he reached her, he put one arm around her, at the small of her back. His other hand touched her cheek. "Integra," he breathed, gazing into her eyes.
She said nothing, but her heart beat fast, and he bent slowly, his cool lips brushing hers. She gasped silently, and he kissed her deeply, holding her body close to his. After a long moment, he broke the kiss and began trailing a line of small kisses down her jaw. He kissed her neck and then nipped her lightly, causing her to gasp and tense up. He nipped her again, still not hard enough to break the skin, then raised his lips to her ear. "I'm going to bite now," he murmured.
She nodded, and he returned his attention to her neck. His arms tightened around her into a firm support, and she gasped, in pain this time, as he bit all the way to her jugular and began drinking greedily. She found herself unable to move, unable to even cry out. After a long moment she realized that she was breathing in gasps and beginning to feel faint.
Her mind began to go blank with fear. Oh God, I'm going to die! Someone, help! But she knew there was no help coming, no way to stop her servant now that he was feeding. Her vision was going gray around the edges, and she knew that Alucard was now supporting her entire weight.
Abruptly he lowered both of them to the bed, laying her down. He raised his wrist to his mouth, pulling down the sleeve and biting himself. He placed the wound to her lips, and she swallowed the thick red liquid reflexively. Immediately, hunger kindled in her, and she drank eagerly. After a moment she was strong enough to sit up, holding his wrist to her mouth on her own.
She heard him inhale through his teeth, and a moment later he said, "That's enough, Integra." She ignored him, lost in the taste of his blood, and he pulled his wrist away from her forcefully. She sighed contentedly and licked her lips, settling back down on the bed. Why am I suddenly so tired? she wondered, then sank slowly into oblivion.
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