A/N: You know, this story wasn't supposed to be that big of a deal. It was a random thought moment I came up with where I went, "Hey, what would happen if Seras had an older sister?". Yeah. That's where it came from. Anyway, it's 2 in the morning and we got back from Decatur a few hours ago. I figured I'd update and then work on writing some more. I'm up to chapter seven. But I need more reference material. Anderson's accent is going to kill me, I swear. -_-;

One

Seras sat out on the front steps, knees pulled up to her chest as she stared at the orange glow lining the horizon before her across the vast estate of the Hellsing property. One year had passed since Wynter left and things were finally beginning to calm down in England. The Round Table members had managed to brush off the Japanese forces attacking Hellsing as nothing more than a religious cult going to extremes with military equipment. The survivors of the agency, natural and unnatural alike had vanished without a trace in Europe's wild countries. Arakawa had been deported back to Japan for trial by the Japanese government. For Seras, life at Hellsing was back to the usual routine. But still, she couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing. She knew what it was, but she also knew there was nothing she could do about it. Wynter had promised she'd visit, but who knew when that would be? She only assured them she'd return before Walter and Integra died. Alucard didn't seem to notice a difference in his former-apprentice's moods, but Integra did. It was pretty clear; Seras rarely spoke anymore and when she did, her tone was clipped and emotionless. Wynter had left an enormous void behind that affected the young Draculina. Once in a while, Alucard would comment on the situation, saying that to walk the path of the Draculina is a long and difficult road, filled with anguish and despair, loneliness and frustration, hate and anger. It was the path that Wynter chose to walk and still walked to this day. However, Seras wanted to believe that being a Draculina meant much more than what Alucard claimed. Wynter had proven that by herself. Over a hundred years spent in loneliness, Wynter harbored a bitterness and the aura of a troubled and deeply thoughtful individual. She got along all right with humans, but it was clear she felt uncomfortable around them, and so avoided them understandably. Unlike Seras, Wynter could remember nothing of her human life and had spent well over a century and a half existing like this.

Seras gazed up at the sky, sighing. It was quiet right now. Few cases had been reported of supernatural creatures of any kind attacking humans. Alucard was nowhere to be found, possibly off searching for something to ease his boredom. As of late, he'd taken to treasure hunting for one reason or another, often returning with small finds of burlap bags containing anything from old journals to corroded jewelry. One time, he found a seemingly ancient hunting knife and to everyone's shock, presented this as a gift for Seras, saying he figured she might find it interesting. He'd been correct. Seras had spent the next few days gently removing the rust and corrosion from its surface, revealing it to be constructed of rusted silver. It was an intriguing discovery and Walter suggested that its deteriorated exterior probably accounted for why it didn't scorch Alucard and Seras. Its corrosion thus made it possible to be handled by vampires.

But now, Seras really didn't care. She just missed Wynter, that's all.

She felt it then, that pricking feeling in the back of her mind, like a cluster of needles. Alucard was summoning her. This meant that Integra had summoned him. They had a job to do, now.

Integra was looking over a stack of reports sent in by civilians all over the countryside. Sightings of supernatural creatures. In the year since Arakawa's facility had been disbanded permanently, these sightings had become quite frequent. Since less than half accounted for human and vampire skirmishes, Integra had to assume that the older, natural vampires freed alongside the creations were simply passing through populated areas during their nightly travels. Not all vampires were nomadic like Wynter was. Most of these natural vampires probably set root for the day in cemeteries or mausoleums. The younger creations of Arakawa's were probably having difficulties adjusting. Unlike the chipped vampires they were currently dealing with, these vampires could be considered natural creations because they were created directly with the DNA of a single pure vampire, and a powerful one at that. Given a few decades and they'd be old enough and wise enough to avoid human contact.

But for the moment, they were causing trouble whether they wanted to or not and Integra was left to deal with it as she and her ancestors always had.

She glanced up at Alucard and Seras's approach into her office. By this time, Seras had finally learned to warp through solid objects like Alucard, although she occasionally got stuck in the process as her concentration failed and Alucard had to help her out. Now was one of those times. Only her left foot and left half of her body got stuck. She pushed against the wall with her right hand, straining with all her might to get through. Integra sighed.

"Alucard," she said wearily. Alucard shook his head, grabbed Seras's arm and yanked her through into Integra's office. Seras stumbled briefly and then laughed sheepishly, "Sorry," she said, "I guess I still haven't gotten the hang of it yet,"

"You'd better master it, soon, Seras," Integra warned. "But forget that for now. We have a new assignment to take care of,"

"What is it?" Seras asked. Alucard stepped forward and took the paper describing the most recent attacks on civilians in a small town to the north.

"This brings back memories," he said tonelessly, handing Seras the document. Seras scanned over it quickly and frowned, "But this is describing what appears to be natural vampires, Sir Integra. We haven't had any cases concerning them for a while, now,"

"Correct, Seras," Integra said firmly, "And this is what concerns me. Arakawa's agency was revealed to be holding a total of thirty-seven vampires. Of those, eight were naturals and two were originals. A good deal of them have already been eliminated by various hunters over the past few months, the Iscariots included. However, two naturals have been spotted wandering the wild countries of northern Ireland. According to reports, they appear to be gradually moving southward at a steady rate,"

"Um," Seras said, uncertain of herself, "Is there any chance that, well, uh...Wynter is included in these statistics?"

Integra's eyes flickered and she pushed her glasses further up the bridge of her nose, "There's no way to be sure, Seras," she said, expressionless, "Wynter has been missing for over a year. I'm certain that factions of Arakawa's research team still exist, wanting to prove their leader's ridiculous and farfetched theories. With this in mind, Wynter has likely remained on the run,"

"Oh," Seras mumbled, downcast. She fell silent.

"What of Louis Von Brunswick?" Alucard asked.

"So far, not a word on him. Typical of most originals, he may have gone into hiding for his own protection. Our only news is on the creations and the naturals making their way west and south, toward us,"

"Hm," Alucard muttered, frowning, "Could it be that they're searching out Wynter?"

Integra frowned, glancing at him strangely, "And what does that mean?"

"These created vampires were made with Wynter's genetics," Alucard explained, though Integra already knew, "They may be able to sense her presence and are seeking her out for protection,"

"But who knows if she's even still in Great Britain anymore?" Seras mumbled. "Who knows? Maybe she even managed to leave this country,"

"Highly improbable," Integra cut in, "It's very difficult for a vampire of any caliber to cross large bodies of water such as the ocean. Without a doubt, she remains in Europe."

This did little to perk Seras's mood on the matter, but she forced her feelings back and remained silent.

"So then, Integra," Alucard said craftily, "What should our course of attack be?"

"Nothing," Integra answered plainly, "We wait and see. If we're dealing with natural vampires or originals, our actions should be carefully constructed to fit the caliber of the individual should they prove threatening. Weaker targets will be much simpler,"

She fished through the stack of papers and produced a single sheet of stationary, handing it to Alucard, "These are all the supplies you'll need for this assignment," she said, "And it had better remain at this,"

Alucard sighed in clear disappointment. "Well, I do happen to like trains." he muttered. Seras frowned in confusion as Alucard left the office, mumbling to himself.

"So," Seras said, "It's a scouting trip?"

"Correct, Seras," Integra replied, "If we're dealing with natural vampires this time around, we need to be sure of what we're going up against."

Seras nodded and turned, following Alucard out.

They first had to stop down in the basement to see Walter. Seras was apprehensive about this because her worry for the elderly butler had only gotten worse over the past year. Five months before, Walter had unexpectedly suffered a stroke and was hospitalized for a little over two months. He'd insisted on coming back to work the second he was physically able and hadn't been in the best shape since then. Integra knew better than to try to force him to rest against his will, but she'd worked out a compromise with him. He now spent the daylight hours resting and was allowed to move around during the nighttime hours when things quieted down around the estate. Walter had accepted these terms, much to their relief, but he occasionally underwent bouts of weakness. Seras could sense that even Alucard's anxiety for the old man was growing by the day. There was no telling what the future held for the Angel of Death.

Fortunately, they found him in relatively good spirits downstairs in his workshop, tinkering with some new model gun. He glanced up at their approach, a smile gracing his weathered face.

"Ah, Alucard, Ms. Victoria, perfect timing," he said as cheerfully as ever.

"What have you got there, Walter?" Alucard asked.

"Since I presented Wynter with the miniaturized version of the Jackal, I've been playing around with its design. I do believe that there are great things in store for this particular weapon. Unfortunately, you seem to be content with the Jackal, Wynter's not here anymore and Ms. Victoria is still too inexperienced to handle this new version as of yet," he said sadly.

He handed the test model to Alucard, who braced it up, eying it carefully. "It's rather small, isn't it?" he drawled.

"I never said you had to use it," Walter said curtly. "Besides, it isn't finished yet,"

He took it back, unloaded the magazine and stowed it safely into a velvet lined case on his desk. He closed it, latching it tightly and turned.

"From what I understand, you're to take a train to Bristol to investigate the possible appearances of several natural vampires, is that correct?"

"Precisely," Alucard said, "We have reason to believe that these vampires have slowly been making their way here from Japan following their release from Arakawa's facility. It makes sense,"

"That it does. Very well then," Walter said, turning. He handed them each a fresh magazine of rounds, "I don't expect you to need these," he said, "However, try to keep the damage to a minimum," Walter advised, "Ordinarily, we'd send professional scouts on a mission of this magnitude, but because we're possibly dealing with naturals, we're going on the safe side this time around. Please try not to botch this up," Walter warned wearily. Seras understood his caution. Alucard got more out of control and more conspicuous with each passing day. It was likely he'd break through the Cromwell Seal long before Integra passed away. The Cromwell Seal was weakening and Alucard would soon be free once again.

/ooo/

Alucard claimed to like trains, but he seemed extremely agitated at the station. Seras had spent most of her life riding trains and was nearly desensitized to the sights, sounds and now, with her vampiric abilities, smells that came with them. In her wildest dreams, she'd never have believed that smoke could smell so incredibly foul, even miles away from the engine itself. This was another thing that bothered Alucard. To Seras's shock, he'd actually gone into a coughing fit on the platform, not stopping for several minutes. By the time he'd finally ceased, he was nearly fit to be tied. Seras sighed.

"Master, I thought you liked trains," she muttered.

"I do. I'm not incredibly fond of the smoke, however," Alucard growled, his voice hoarse. He cleared his throat.

"But we don't even need to breathe!" Seras exclaimed, earning confused stares from passerby around her. She lowered her voice, "So what's the matter?"

"Seras, you aren't telling me you haven't noticed that we do however need to inhale in order to speak, correct?" Alucard answered, barely keeping his voice contained. Seras blinked, indeed, having forgotten that particular factoid. Yes, it was true that they no longer required air as a necessity, but in order to talk, they needed air in their lungs to function the vocal cords as they had when they were humans. Seras hummed and glanced over at the train several meters away, waiting to leave the station.

Finally, the whistle sounded, announcing it was time to board. Seras tugged at the hem of her jacket and sighed. Integra had given her some of her old clothes to wear so she wouldn't be so conspicuous. They consisted of a white blouse with a heavy cream-colored overcoat and matching pants. Seras figured that this must have been the period in Integra's life when she abandoned feminine apparel for whatever reason. Seras had also taken along her father's old cap, one of the few things she had remaining of him. Except for her eyes, she appeared human. Alucard had gone exactly the same way he always looked, the same red Victorian style coat and red cravat, charcoal suit and riding boots. Seras never asked why his sense of fashion was so outdated. She doubted he'd give her a worthwhile answer as it was.

They boarded the train, taking their seats. Alucard still appeared out of sorts, but he seemed in much better spirits now that they'd left the smoky station.

"Master, I take it you don't get out much," Seras ventured. Alucard threw her a curious glance, crossing one leg over the other and folding his hands in his lap, "And what makes you say that?"

"You just really seem to dislike the human populace, that's all," Seras said. He scrutinized her like a hawk, his eyes barely visible behind his glasses, "I don't dislike the human populace, Seras," he said brusquely, "I dislike their ever-changing environment."

He closed his eyes, content to nod off until the train started. Seras knew he wasn't really asleep. He never completely relaxed anywhere except for his chambers deep within Hellsing, the one place which guaranteed him safety. Once he fell asleep there, it was extremely difficult to wake him and nothing short of dumping cold water on him did the trick, a feat which only Integra was brave enough to accomplish if absolutely necessary Seras sighed and leaned back in her seat, watching him and reliving the past two years she'd spent as his apprentice. She was still his apprentice, but she was no longer the weak little police-girl Alucard had turned into a vampire. She still had a long way to go before she was ready to become true Nosferatu like Alucard, but in the very least, he'd stopped calling her Police-Girl for the most part. He usually referred to her by her given name, except when he was feeling quirky, which happened somewhat more commonly than she would have liked these days. Seras still didn't have him entirely figured out. One minute, he could be sarcastic, verbal, and cheerful and the next, morose, sadistic, and irritable.

Seras jumped as the train gave a sharp jolt. They were getting ready to leave the station. It was about a two-hour ride to Bristol. Seras was actually surprised Alucard had agreed to go along with this idea, whether he liked trains or not. He was perfectly capable of flying there himself in half that time as a bat or fog, and leaving Seras to suffer through the train ride by her lonesome. In fact, one of the reasons she was going with him was only to help improve his disguise as a human by posing as his daughter, despite the fact that they looked nothing at all alike. If Wynter had still been around, she would have been much better suited to the job, in more ways than one.

The train pulled out of the station, gathering speed as it sped along the tracks. Seras leaned on her elbow against the window, gazing out at the rolling landscape. She watched the distant Tower of London fading away into the gloomy fog blanketing the city.

"What are you thinking about?"

Seras jumped and whirled to Alucard. He had his chin braced against his hand, leaning on it and watching her, smiling slightly. Seras frowned. "Why are you asking? All you have to do is probe my thoughts," she grumbled. Alucard chuckled mirthfully, "Integra is definitely rubbing off on you," he said, "You're becoming more like her every day,"

"Is that a good thing?"

"Yes and no," Alucard replied, "I'm willing to bet you were thinking about Wynter,"

Seras smirked, "Yes and no, master," she taunted.

"Touche," Alucard replied, baring his fangs, "Fine then, Police-girl, keep your secrets. It's not like it matters to me,"

"You're weird, master. I think you've spent one too many years in Hellsing's basement," Seras grumbled.

"When you're as old as I am, boredom is a constant companion, Seras," Alucard said.

"That reminds me, just how old are you, anyway?" Seras asked.

"Why should I tell you that? Time has no meaning for our kind. I only recall my age because it gives me something to reflect on. You'll probably end up forgetting your age after a few decades. It's normal,"

"I won't forget my age, master," Seras said irritably, settling back in her seat and leaning her arm on the windowpane, "I'm never going to forget,"

"Helena once said the same thing to me," Alucard said in mention of the child-like vampire occupying an abandoned office building in the heart of London, "And not thirty years later, it completely slipped her mind,"

This depressed Seras somewhat and Alucard noticed, tilting his head up from beneath the brim of his hat. He frowned and shrugged, "However, if you prefer to recall such a human trait, despite your clear lack of humanity, far be it from me to interfere, Police-girl," he said disinterestedly. Seras blinked at him in surprise. Then, she hummed and sat back, gazing out the window, watching the sea slowly slip from view along the grassy knolls. Soon, it was out of sight completely and something stirred within her at this thought. It was, to her chagrin, a feeling of relief. Vampires were naturally repelled by the sea, so it was no wonder she'd be relieved to escape from it. This made her wonder at the fierce determination exhibited by these vampires appearing in Great Britain. Their desire to seek protection must have been strong enough to overcome any misgivings they might have at crossing the sea in whatever way they were able to.

"Master," Seras said, "If I ask you something, will you give me an honest answer?"

"It depends on the question," Alucard replied. Seras rolled her eyes and continued, "It's very difficult for vampires to cross the sea," she pointed out. Alucard chuckled, "That's true, but that's not a question," he said.

"My question is this; how is it possible for a vampire to cross water?" Seras asked.

"First things first, Police-girl, the water must be flowing in a general direction at a steady rate in order for the crossing to be problematic. We are bound to the earth as walking dead, so water is our natural enemy," Alucard explained, "It can corrode us, threaten to devour us alive should we linger within its depths for too long. It's power is strong enough to pull us, hence the reason we are unable to cross flowing water. The powerful currents act to slowly disintegrate our bodies a little at a time until nothing remains. In order for a vampire to cross such a deadly adversary, human intervention is required,"

"What do you mean?"

"A metal ship, a life raft constructed of durable wood, even a wooden bridge lined with soil would do the trick," Alucard said with a shrug, "If it was made by humans, it's relatively safe for vampiric creatures to use. There are many effective ways these days, but there is a great lack of vampires willing to try them," he said, smirking.

"So I'm guessing you were one of the few brave enough to give it a try," Seras muttered.

"That's correct, Police-girl. However, It's been decades since I crossed over from the mainland to take up residence with the Hellsing family in England. The journey was long and arduous, but I made it. That reminds me," he mumbled, folding his arms pensively, "I wonder if that little place I had my eye on is still there..."

He fell silent, lost in thought, presumably about something in his cloudy past. Seras watched him for a few moments.

"Why do you ask?" Alucard said suddenly, "Are you planning on leaving?"

"No, no!" Seras said immediately, "I'm not going anywhere, I promise!"

Alucard smirked, "You make it seem as though I'd be sad if you left," he said mockingly. Seras blinked and then scowled, fuming, "Jeez, it's nice to know how much you care, master," she growled.

"It should be, because I would miss you," Alucard said pleasantly. Here, Seras started in surprise. Was he serious?

"You...you would?" she said.

"Without a doubt. It's not everyday you meet such a sad vampire such as you. You're an endless source of entertainment, Police-girl," he said with a leer. Seras's eyebrow twitched and she lashed to her right, snatching a magazine out of the seat pocket beside her and whipping it at him in anger. He allowed himself to be hit, snickering madly as it bounced off his hat and into the seat beside him. Seras snarled under her breath, "You're mean," she growled.

"Now, now, mind your behavior, my daughter," Alucard chuckled as the conductor came around to take their tickets. Alucard handed their passes to him, he stamped them and gave them back and moved on, casting suspicious glances at them as he went, "You must act like the proper young lady I raised you to be,"

Seras snorted, "Oh sure, you're so right, dad," she hissed at him, "I'll try to remember that the next time I kill someone on your orders,"

"Good girl," Alucard said, pushing his luck big time, "Keep up the good behavior and I'll buy you a souvenir on the way home,"

"Yeah, knowing you, master, it'll be a shrunken head," Seras grumbled. She sighed. Looking at them from a human's point of view, you'd never believe they weren't really father and daughter from the way they acted. Heck, you'd never believe they were vampire sire and fledgling on a scouting assignment for a secret sect of hunters serving Her Majesty, the queen. Well, technically, she supposed, he was her undead father. After all, she'd died as a human and been reborn as a vampire thanks to Alucard. But after living with him for two years, she couldn't imagine a life without his constant teasing. She supposed it was his way of showing that he really did in fact care about her. She couldn't think of anything else. After all, he'd probably rather allow the Paladin Anderson to kill him before he'd openly admit it.

Seras yawned. The coat and cap protected her from the sun for the most part, but being nocturnal presented daylight work as a problem. She always got drowsy during the day. But being the former police officer that she was, Seras couldn't allow herself to fall asleep and risk her guard on the train.

"Get some sleep," Alucard said suddenly. Seras rubbed her eyes, shaking her head. "I can't do that," she said, barely suppressing a yawn, "We'll be there in two hours. I have to stay alert,"

"If you're tired during the job, you'll have sloppy results," Alucard admonished firmly, "I'm your master, Police-girl, so you'll do as I say. Get some sleep,"

"But, master—" Seras protested. But a fierce glare from Alucard silenced any further complaints. Seras sighed and leaned back, closing her eyes. She could feel him watching her.

Gradually, however, she was grateful for it. The gentle hypnotic rhythm of the train rumbling along the tracks and the warm air inside the car both worked in unison to soon lull her into a peaceful sleep.

Alucard finally sensed her drifting off and glanced out the window, watching the countryside fly by. He knew she was tired; he was too. But she needed the rest more than he did. After all, even two years later, it was hard to change a time clock your body had lived by its whole life. He was long, long since used to it. He had to be.

It was then that he began to wonder what Wynter was up to these days. Saying goodbye to her hadn't been easy on Seras. But one had to wonder what sometimes went through that vampire's brain on occasion. After all, while Wynter never served humans directly as he did, she certainly couldn't stay away from them. She'd admitted to him that she'd fallen in love with a human over seventy years ago. He smirked.

"Huh. I guess we aren't so different, are we, Wynter?" he mumbled.

A/N: Ideas are flooding in for this story! Faster than I can keep up with them! In fact, I like it so much, that I want to incorporate similar plots to my own novel! That would be so cool! Heh, no wonder I can never finish anything. I'll bet I'm a reincarnation of Alexandre Dumas. He had to hire people to help him because he couldn't keep track of his own ideas, lol. Critics called them a "Fiction Factory", but so what? I'm the same way. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.