Integra found the lawn an inviting place with enough warm grass to satisfy anyone's needs. The garden behind the manor was adorned with flowers and vines growing up the sides of a gazebo. Integra enjoyed her tea on especially warm blue skied days. When the offhand chance arose that Walter had to retrieve something from inside she would sneak away from their lessons and off into the woods surrounding the house to lay in the grassy clearing just behind the tree- line. Their were always flowers in the summer and butterflies that fluttered and danced from flower to flower in the warm sunshine. Integra felt alone here, but always watched.
She had decided that it was because Walter always came for her only minutes after she had run off to lay in the sunshine. The leader of the Hellsing Organization needed a break too. Didn't her father have many breaks? Surely he was a lazy man, leaving his studies in disarray until Walter returned from Warsaw. Integra decided laying in the grass on that particular day that she had inherited the 'just plain laziness' from her father.
Integra smiled at the thought of her father and watched the clouds roll across the sky slowly. The sunlight was so warm that Integra didn't want to move as she heard someone come crashing though the forest. Walter, no doubt, was annoyed and this annoyed Integra. She closed her eyes. Perhaps if she pretended to be asleep he would let her be for awhile longer.
Integra laid quietly and awaited her punishment only to feel a gentle caress or her cheek. She thought that it might be a flower and simply made a face and shrugged it off. The bridge of her nose tickled then and she wrinkled her nose, opening her eyes to see the vampire. She jumped. He never ceased scaring her.
"Alucard," she said, holding her chest as if she was having a heart attack and sighed.
"Master," he purred to her and held his hand out to her, opening it carefully.
Integra looked down into his hand to see every butterfly from the field sitting happily. She looked up at him with her blue eyes and he smiled his insane smile. He was giving her a gift. He wanted to be praised.
"Very lovely, Alucard," she nodded to him and smiled without showing her teeth to him.
"You enjoy them don't you, Master?"
"Yes, I do, Alucard. You can let release them." Integra told him and watched as the creatures took flight from his hand to collect pollen and live happily among the flowers.
"You did not want my gift?" Alucard smirked at her as she stood and dusted her skirt off.
"No, I simply do not have room for more pets, Alucard," she smirked at him and Alucard gave her an amused smile at this sardonic comment.
"Oh, Master, you flatter me so. I am the only pet for you then?" He asked her as he too stood up to stand over her. Even at fifteen Integra was still shorter than him. She placed her hands on her hips and looked up to the vampire before her. She was not afraid of the vampire.
"Yes. You are the only pet I will ever require, Alucard."