Two

"Are you sure he'll stay there?"

"Positive. I've yet to see him cause trouble."

"Okay, since when can you guarantee that?"

Marjorie sat behind the counter at the bakery, watching Wynter and Seras discuss the falcon sitting up on top of the display cabinet against the wall, staring down at them and seemingly following the debate.

"Just trust me; he'll stay put." Wynter assured her, glancing up at the bird, "Won't you?"

The falcon ruffled its feathers.

"See?"

Seras's expression was indeterminate; "Wynter…you're weird."

She returned to the kitchen and Wynter grabbed an apron, tying her long hair back into a ponytail, "So, since I've got nothing else to do, need any help?"

Marjorie frowned, "You don't have to be here today, Wynter. We're pretty set for a while."

"I know, but we're due for rain today, my fences are up, Alucard and Integra are out somewhere, and I'm bored."

Marjorie gasped, faking shock and horror, "Oh heavens, you're bored!? No, not bored! Anything but that!" she exclaimed, laughing, "Oh fine, you can work here a while if you'd like. But what about him?"

She jerked her thumb in the falcon's direction. It was still sitting up there, unmoving, but watching them. Wynter smiled, "Well, if he gets restless, just open the door and let him out. He'll do what he likes."

She retreated back into the kitchen and Marjorie eyed the falcon curiously as it dozed atop the cabinet, its wings tucked tightly against itself. She had to admit; it was an awfully calm bird. Choosing to ignore the bird, she pulled her binder and laptop out and started to work on the new biographies of the arrivals recently brought over from the border. They'd be stopping in sometime that day and she figured it was just as well that Wynter and Seras were both in the bakery; they'd probably want to show the newcomers who they were for future reference. Vampiric residents of the town knew to go to either the bakery or to Wynter or Seras, whichever they ran into first or were closest to whenever they were in trouble.

Marjorie jumped when she heard Wynter behind her suddenly, turning to see her setting a tray of rolls on the counter as she pulled a wicker basket down from the shelf to start filling it. She sighed, "Wynter, don't sneak up on me like that; you scared the daylights out of me."

"Maybe that's a good thing. You probably need those scared out of you after all this time." Wynter joked, lining the rolls up neatly in the basket.

"I really don't think so, thanks." Marjorie grumbled, "I manage just fine without that added stress."

"Huh, 'added stress' is right. You take on enough to deal with running this place. And it's bigger than the Bristol colony ever was." Wynter said admiration.

"Yes, but that makes it so much harder. I'm supposed to meet Louis at the capital next month to speak with the Chancellor about expanding our territory to allow more refugees in. We only have room for maybe three hundred more individuals and at the rate they're coming, we'll reach that goal before too long."

"I see your point," Wynter said with a sympathetic smile, "But don't forget; this is what we wanted. You can handle it, Marjorie. You don't really give yourself enough credit."

Marjorie sighed indignantly, "That isn't the problem. I'm sure I can handle it, but I still have a lot to learn about governing. And keeping the Royal Family satisfied that we're worth their protection is no easy task. One of the King's advisors recommended adding specially trained vampires to the Forsvaret."

Wynter frowned darkly, "Oh, because that ended so well when Nazi-Germany did it." She snarled quietly, "We are not sending our vampires into the goddamn army! That gets across the entirely wrong message to the world."

"The King seems to like the idea," Marjorie said quietly, "So I came up with a compromise I'll bring up next month during the meeting; I'll allow a strictly small group of individuals to assist in the Cyber Force and the Home Guard. And then, they'll serve as direct representatives to the Kristiansand Base Settlement."

Wynter seemed unconvinced, but she nodded slowly, "Fine, but you need to add that they are forbidden from engaging unless directly ordered to do so. And then we should consider placing Alucard in charge of that decision."

Marjorie's eyes widened in alarm, "Wha—Alucard!? Why? It's such a major decision! I mean if he should—" she exclaimed, trailing off at Wynter's incredulous expression. She raised an eyebrow, "Why not? Marjorie, he may be brash, but he's by no means senseless. He knows when to use discretion and when to attack. He also knows that there're more on the line here than just a bit of mild entertainment for his boredom; it's the fate of a small developing country. He understands how these things work."

Marjorie listened patiently, running the idea through her mind, "Well…yes, I suppose he would, wouldn't he? Given who he is, I wouldn't be surprised, but…."

Wynter chuckled, "Don't tell him that. He doesn't really like to be reminded. It makes him sulk and that's just the saddest sight I can think of." She said mirthfully.

"So it's a choice between him sulking or being obnoxious. What a choice to have to make." Marjorie joked. She looked away, "All right, I'll consider it. It does make sense, at that."

"Glad to hear it." Wynter said, untying her hair and then retying it into a higher ponytail. She was about to replace the kerchief on her head and return to the kitchen when they heard the bells on the front door ring. Marjorie turned and smiled, "Well, good timing. Seems our new arrivals are here." She said.

Into the bakery stepped a tall, lanky individual wearing a dark blue long coat with three black straps holding it shut. His medium length, wispy blond hair was tied back out of his face with a piece of string and he turned narrow, coppery-red eyes toward Marjorie and Wynter. He offered a light bow out of respect, "Good morning," he greeted cheerfully, "I hope we didn't keep you waiting too long."

"Not at all, Roderick. Come in." Marjorie said. He did so, followed by five individuals, all looking haggard and weary, but alert and cautious as they took in their surroundings. Three of the group were young men, two of whom bore a striking resemblance to one another and the third a good deal older in appearance with stringy brown hair and dull eyes. The other two were a younger girl walking alongside a woman who appeared much older. The young girl kept her hair in two rigid pigtails atop her head, bright red eyes scrutinizing all around her. The woman kept her long chestnut hair in a stringent braid, leading the girl along by the shoulder.

"So this is Kristiansand?" she mumbled, turning toward the vampire called Roderick.

"Yes, it is. This is the settlement you five will be living in, now."

He turned toward the counter again, "These are the five new arrivals. As I mentioned, three vampires, two humans. The brothers here are the only humans, Travis and William Hayward. The older man is Tyrim and the woman is his niece, Vetta. The girl is unrelated. Her name is Cynthia."

Marjorie nodded politely, "It's a pleasure to meet all of you. I hope you'll enjoy living here."

Travis scowled and turned to Roderick, "I thought you said we were meeting the leader here." He snapped.

"We are, and she's here." Roderick growled irritably, irked at the blatant disrespect. Both brothers whirled, their eyes unfortunately falling on Wynter. Travis pointed uncertainly at her and she cleared her throat and shook her head, grinning mischievously, "Sorry, you've got one more choice."

Marjorie chuckled sheepishly as both brothers' jaws dropped at the sight of her and William burst out laughing, "No way! The vampire settlement is run by a little girl!? Oh man, how long 'till this place gets leveled!?" he bellowed, laughing hysterically. Fortunately, his brother seemed to have enough sense to at least blush in embarrassment. There was only a short breeze to indicate rapid movement as Wynter suddenly bore down ominously on the youth, her eyes boring into his and instantly stifling his laughter. Her hair had escaped the string holding it up and billowed darkly behind her as her wings unfurled, her lips curling back to reveal her sharp fangs. William's face immediately drained of blood as he tried to step back away from her.

"Now listen," Wynter purred delicately in a voice that nowhere near matched the animosity rolling off of her in waves, "Marjorie is not only our leader, she's our founder and this settlement has survived decades of abuse thanks to her guidance. And just in case she runs into trouble from firebrands like you, she has help. That's me."

"And me." Another voice said from behind the counter, revealing Seras standing there, also projecting a vicious aura in warning. Tendrils of red-violet shadow matter bled off of her and rippled through the air as her blazing red eyes glared over to the petrified group.

They blinked once. The darkness was gone, the tension lifted. Wynter was now standing in front of the counter, with Seras leaning on it from behind as they watched the newcomers placidly.

"I think you'll like it here," Seras said, chuckling, "And double points if you've got a sense of humor."

"I think they like us." Wynter chimed, glancing at her sister.

"Yeah! And if they like us, they'll love our sire!"

Both girls dissolved into laughter and Marjorie, previously standing behind the counter with her eyes covered in embarrassment, grabbed both of their arms and shoved them, still laughing, back into the kitchen, "Get to work!" she yelled in exasperation.

"Aw, no fun!" Seras cackled from the back.

Marjorie sighed heavily and turned to her guests. Except for Roderick standing with a strained expression on his face, the others were all frozen in a combination of terror and confusion. She giggled nervously, "Uh…don't worry so much everyone. That's just their way of welcoming you to Kristiansand."

"Oh…," Vetta muttered, "I sure do feel…welcomed, now…."

"Y-Yeah," William babbled, still sheet white.

"Uh," Marjorie stammered, composing herself and clearing her throat, "Well, anyway, that was Wynter Genevieve and Seras Victoria Hellsing. They're Alucard's daughters and serve as troubleshooters here in town."

"What!? The Alucard!?" Tyrim exclaimed.

"Yes. He's employed as our defense strategist. You may meet him later," Marjorie explained, "I'll get it out of the way; if you ever run into trouble, come here or find one of those sisters. They'll help you for certain; it's their job. Trust me, they really are nice."

Roderick shook his head, "You'll have to take her word on that." He said bemusedly.

Marjorie stepped out from behind the counter, "Well then, lets' get you all settled. What can you all do?"

The little group exchanged wary glances with one another before Vetta spoke first, "Well, I was a chef before I was turned two months ago, so…." She muttered, her voice fading off. Marjorie beamed, "Perfect! The couple who runs the café down at the harbor was just telling me they'd like some help in their kitchen! Would you be interested?"

Vetta blinked a few times in amazement and looked away, "Well, yes, I would but…I can't really cook anymore, though."

"Of course you can," Marjorie assured her, "Our best baker at the moment is a vampire. Just ask for human assistance in that regard. Now, what about the rest of you? Tyrim?"

Tyrim coughed dryly, "I wonder if it might be possible to stay with Vetta a while longer," he said, "I'm the one who turned her; I'd like to keep an eye on her."

The young leader smiled in understanding, "I see. I'm sure that can be arranged. Now then, you two," she said, addressing Travis and William, "What can you do?"

"Uh," Travis stammered, "Well, I worked in a supermarket for a while before we had to leave town. William hasn't really done much of anything yet."

"I have so!" his brother snapped indignantly, "I helped uncle Jake at his farm for months! Remember?"

"Yeah, before that mule sent you flying!"

"And whose fault was that for sneaking up behind me while I was brushing him!?"

Marjorie tried multiple times to butt into the argument, failing each time as Travis snatched William into a headlock. It was only when Wynter let out a shriek in the kitchen that they froze and stepped back in terror as she poked her head around the doorway, glowering at them. "Knock it off!" she shouted, vanishing again.

Marjorie sighed and turned back to the petrified brothers as she managed a pleasant grin, "We'll have you two run deliveries here at the bakery for now," she said somewhat lamely, "This way you'll grow more accustomed to the town."

"Uh…y-yeah, sure." Travis muttered.

"Hey, what about me!?" Cynthia exclaimed exuberantly.

"How old are you, dear?" Marjorie asked curiously.

"I'm seven, going on eight!" she proclaimed quite proudly.

"Do you want to help us here?"

"Here? Doing what?"

"I could really use someone here to help make the shop look pretty to customers. I have a lot of people to keep track of and knowing everything is in good hands would help a lot." Marjorie said with a wink. Cynthia looked up at Vetta, "Could I do that?"

"If you want to, sure." Vetta replied with a shrug. Cynthia turned back around, smiling with a shrug, "I'll try it." She said finally.

"Okay," Marjorie said finally, "Seems we have everything accounted for. Roderick is going to take you to the hotel downtown for now. We're renovating a house in the east district for the five of you, that is, if you wish to stay together."

"For the time being, we do." Tyrim answered quietly.

"Only 'cause Will is too scared to stay by himself." Travis chuckled, jerking his thumb toward his brother.

"Say that to my face, you little—"

"Ahem."

They both froze again as Wynter appeared in the kitchen doorway, her face blank. The fight immediately cooled and she returned quietly to the back. Travis sighed and nudged his brother, "Jeez, can she hear everything?" he whispered.

"Of course I can't!" Wynter yelled back. The twins blanched.

Marjorie giggled and ushered them toward the door, "Go on now, off with you. Get settled. We'll meet back here tomorrow morning to discuss your working arrangements."

She waved after them as Roderick led them outside. Then she turned back with a heavy sigh and plodded over to the counter, sitting down at one of the barstools with a groan, "Oh wow…," she mumbled, "What a group."

Wynter peeked back out again, her hair once again pulled back into a ponytail as she pulled her kerchief off. She moved toward the counter and leaned against it, her arms folded, "So, that's the new group, eh?"

"Yup. Why'd you have to haze them like that?"

"To test their mettle of course. Well, and to put those two boys in their place. They need to learn a little respect."

Marjorie watched her as she wandered back behind the counter and sat down on the stool, smirking at her. She scowled, "Wynter, scaring the daylights out of them was over the line."

Wynter regarded her silently, her crimson eyes staring straight through her as she scrutinized her, "Marjorie, you do realize that you have to command respect, even if you do it politely, don't you? You're not just running a little cabal anymore; you're leading a small nation. If the people can't feel like they can depend on you, then you won't get very far."

The elder vampire drooped her head, removing her glasses, "Yes, I know. I'm working on it, but it's just such a huge transition. Our numbers have skyrocketed now that the rumors of you and Alucard settling here are beginning to spread."

"We're not that great. If anyone is luring people here, it's Alucard. Besides, Seras has more of a public eye than I do. She's better off in the spotlight."

"But you have more of a commanding presence." Marjorie muttered, "You just have to look at someone funny and they shut up. I can't do that."

"Yes, you can," Wynter bit out, "You're too easy on people. It's just like kids, I'd assume. You have to show confidence to be in control."

Marjorie chuckled dryly, her expression cynical, "Maybe I should transfer leadership to you, instead."

"I could never handle running this place."

"Huh?"

Wynter pulled her ponytail out and wrapped the string around her wrist, "My specialty lies in observation. When push comes to shove, I can fight and hold my own. But when dealing with a crowd of people depending on me to decide crucial matters for them, I'm hopeless. I'm not a leader, Marjorie; I'm a follower. Integra and Alucard are leaders. If you want advice, they'd be much better candidates to help you."

"I don't need advice, I need…I need…." She trailed off, unsure of where she was going with that. Wynter got to her feet and stretched, unfurling her wings, "You need confidence. And you'll get it. The next group that comes in, I'll expect you'll handle them with ease."

She faced the doorway, her dark wings folded loosely at her back. Marjorie watched her quietly, noting with silent amusement how much she seemed to enjoy not needing to hide her wings anymore. This became especially apparent when she sat down again, twisted her left wing closer to her and pulled a fine toothed comb from her pocket that she used to groom them gently. Marjorie didn't complain because Wynter did it mainly to amuse herself and besides all that, she kept her wings very clean.

Things certainly were quiet, now. Kristiansand was a relatively secluded town from the rest of Norway. In the seventy-seven years since the war, things were finally beginning to settle back to normal in most places. Even so, with Norway becoming the only haven for vampires and their supporters, Marjorie knew that very soon, things were going to get hectic, at least for her. She knew Wynter was right; soon, she'd have a lot more to deal with than she ever imagined. Keeping the support of the King, managing the town's finances, managing the annual blood drives and enticing volunteers to attend them, organizing employment for their people and keeping fights and suspicion down was only half of the entire story. She couldn't help but feel a bit daunted at the whole prospect now that their collective group was out in the open. In Bristol with the cabal, their numbers had been drastically smaller and much easier to manage. Marjorie hadn't had that much to do back then, honestly. She kept the vampires under her care safe, happy, and quiet.

"I wish you'd stop worrying." Wynter said breezily. Marjorie jumped a mile, her eyes wide as she whirled to the other vampire, still brushing her wings innocently.

"But…but I'm—"

"Yes you are. I can feel it."

Marjorie jumped again when she heard the sudden sound of wing beats signaling the falcon leaving the top of the display case to land delicately on Wynter's shoulder. She glanced at it fondly and then turned to her friend, "Whether you believe it or not, you've got what it takes. Trust me; after spending so many decades with Alucard and Integra, not to mention my time with Anderson, I can tell."

Marjorie scowled, "Oh really?" she grumbled, "Honestly, Samantha and I were just talking about that."

"What? Oh, don't tell me you're still miffed about that."

"Of course I am. He decapitated you twice and nearly killed you three times."

"Six, but who's counting?"

"Don't sound so damn amused by it."

"Why shouldn't I be? I liked him; he made life interesting, if not entertaining. Everyone could use a little craziness in their lives, you know?" she said as she wandered out from behind the counter, removing her apron and tossing it on the rack. Marjorie turned on the stool, glaring at her, "Wynter, Father Anderson wasn't just crazy, he was a downright lunatic." She grumbled.

"In case you hadn't noticed, so am I." Wynter cackled, "Although I have to admit, he did seem to have a bit of a bipolar streak now and again, didn't he?"

Marjorie sighed wearily, "Whatever you say, Wynter. I know better than to—"

She was cut off when Seras suddenly tore out of the kitchen, nearly crashing into Wynter in her hurry to get to the door, "Emergency at the docks! Wynter, come on!" she screamed, hurling the door open so hard that she about tore it off its hinges.

"Did you forget you can go through walls?! Bye Marjorie!" Wynter yelled, taking off after her. The falcon lifted off into the air as Wynter spread her wings, following after it as she soared across the rooftops of the little coastal town, trailing her sister as she bounded from rooftop to rooftop toward the wharf. She swooped down and snatched her sister's arm, lifting her into the air and beating her wings harder to gain altitude and speed.

"Thanks, Wynter!" Seras yelled, "I got the call on my phone!"

"What's the problem?"

"Rogue vampire! Captain of a barge accidentally brought him over and he's got him barricaded inside the hold! It's a weak one, but he's as strong as he needs to be!"

"Well," Wynter said with a grin, "So are we!"

The wharf came into sight and Wynter thrust her wings back, dropping Seras toward the deckhouse roof. She twisted to the right, switching her momentum toward a large cargo ship where several of the Riot Squad were already gathered. She could see Roderick and his partner Josephine standing by the gangplank awaiting their arrival. Seras was the first to reach them, hurrying forward, "Any changes?" she asked as soon as she reached them.

"No," Josephine said as she tied her long red hair back out of the way, "There's been no further communication."

"One of the deckhands managed to escape and jumped over the railing as the ship was pulling in," Roderick explained, "We managed to fish him out. He said that the crew discovered a man hiding below deck and confronted him. He's a vampire from England. No one's died yet as far as we know, but he's holed up in a cabin below deck with about five hostages."

Seras turned toward the ship; the deck was silent, and so was the ship. The engine wasn't running. The ship was eerily silent. Her eyes narrowed, "Has anyone been sent in to try to calm the situation?" she asked.

"No," Josephine replied, "We're concerned he might kill the hostages."

"What about trying to communicate with him; see if he has any demands?"

"There's no way to communicate anything down to the hold without first boarding the ship." Roderick said. Seras sighed, crossing her arms as she wracked her brain for the proper solution. She glanced up only briefly as Wynter came up beside her, waiting patiently for her answer. She opened her eyes, "Okay everyone, here's what we're going to do. He hasn't bitten anyone yet, correct?"

The red-haired vampire nodded grimly, "As far as we're aware, he hasn't. I don't sense any other vampiric activity on that ship, including ghouls."

"That's good," Wynter said, "It suggests he's trying not to cause further trouble. It's likely he may be seeking asylum, here."

Seras nodded, "I'm going in. Wynter, you cover me."

"Right."

"Roderick, Josephine, I want you to gather three squad members to your teams each and follow ten minutes after us. Split up in different directions and we'll try to form an ambush. Take only the human members; if he hasn't bitten anyone by now, then he's not going to. Dominance clearly isn't his goal. The fewer vampires he can sense coming in after him, the better. We'll funnel him toward the bow of the ship and try to corner him by the water. When we get that far, Wynter, I want you to restrain him as much as you can. You have long range abilities."

"I'll do my best," Wynter said, baring her fangs, "Lead on, sis."

Seras nodded, her writhing shadow matter exploding from her back to form temporary translucent wings that shimmered in the sunlight.

"Go!" she yelled, launching off the dock and onto the deck of the ship. Wynter followed hastily, landing a few feet away from Seras as the younger vampire moved nimbly across the deck, pausing at the hatch leading down into the hold. She motioned Wynter to move parallel to her and keep an eye out.

"Can you sense anything?" Seras asked.

"…Yes…," Wynter mumbled, "He's about twenty feet below us. But I'm not familiar with the layout of this ship so I don't know exactly where he is."

"He can't hide forever; we'll find him. If you should find him first, restrain him, but don't kill him, all right?"

"Easy enough. I've got your back; go ahead." Wynter replied. Seras dove down the stairs with Wynter in hot pursuit. The belly of the ship was a maze of darkened corridors and shifting scents that would have confused any human mind. But for two exceptional vampires, navigation was relatively easy. Wynter gradually began to pick up the distinct sound of human voices, mumbling incoherently through the walls. But even with her advanced hearing, she couldn't pinpoint their exact location with the echoes bouncing off the walls of the ship.

Seras sensed Josephine, Roderick, and their respective teams boarding the ship and taking their positions in case they couldn't contain the vampire. Wynter's eyes blazed in the darkness, "We're close," she muttered, "I can sense him close by."

"Yeah, same here. I'll go in first and distract him. I want you to sneak in behind me and restrain him once I've got his attention." Seras instructed her.

"Okay."

Wynter darted to the side and seemed to crash into the wall. However, she'd simply deformed herself into a mass of writhing blue/black shadow matter crawling across the surface of the wall at high speed, turning a corner and vanishing into the darkness. Seras paused beside the bulkhead, focusing her eyes on a badly beaten and bullet-ridden door. Behind that door was the telltale sound of frightened humans, coupled with the sound of pacing footsteps. She inched up against the door, her eyes narrowing. A twisting tendril of shadow matter escaped from her left arm, slipping under the door and into the hinges, corroding them ever so slightly, just enough to make the door easier to break. Without hearing any sign of alarm from within, she felt the hinges give way and took a silent step closer to the door. She pulled her fist back and slammed it into the entrance, denting the steel and sending it hurtling across the room. The men inside scrambled out of the way as it smashed into the opposite wall, cries of terror near deafening in the cramped space. The vampiric target was frozen in terror as Seras stepped inside, claret eyes meeting his matching set as he trembled before her.

"W-Wha—? How did you—?" he stammered.

Seras ignored him and addressed the sailors, "All of you, out. Now!"

It didn't take a second hint for them to stagger to their feet and rush toward the door. Their former captor made no move to stop them as he stood, staring in terror at the easily recognizable stronger foe standing before him. Even so, as he regained his senses, panic began to kick in and he charged forward recklessly, lashing out to grab her. Seras didn't bother moving as a mass of thick black shadows erupted from the wall and rocketed into her opponent, smashing him against the bulkhead on the other side of the room and pinning him in place. He started to struggle furiously, even as the mass began to morph back into the humanoid shape of Seras's sister, still holding down her victim with ease as she waited for her sibling to approach for interrogation. Seras approached an intercom system on the inner wall of the cabin and pressed the button, "Attention everyone still on this ship, this is Riot Squad Leader Seras Victoria Hellsing. We have contained the threat in the hold of the ship. All remaining deckhands and other personnel, evacuate the ship at once."

She left the wall and approached their trapped target. She motioned for Wynter to release him, which she did without question. She stepped back, her right arm still bleeding shadow matter in case he should try anything funny. The second he felt he was free, he screamed in terror and attempted to bolt toward the door. Seras lashed out faster than the ordinary eye could follow, snatching his arm and hurling back to the floor of the ship facedown, pinning his arm behind his back and pressing his face against the steel floor.

"Please stop struggling; you're only making it worse for yourself." She advised calmly, "Since you've done no physical harm to the crew, we're willing to hear you out. If you continue to fight, we will resort to deadly force." She told him firmly.

"You're here for a reason," Wynter added, "Tell us what that is. Perhaps we can help."

Their prisoner seemed to be weighing his chances, his eyes darting about feverishly in their sockets. Seras and Wynter waited patiently as he made up his mind and finally appeared to relax beneath the younger vampire's grip; "…Okay…I'll t-talk. I'll talk, all right? Please…just let me up. I won't run."

Seras slowly got off of him, allowing him to his feet. He staggered up, turning slowly to face them. It was then that they got a better look at him; his eyes were sunken in and his face gaunt. He was shaking, clearly weakened. Judging from his lackluster movements and reactions, it was clear he was starving and close to torpor. If he didn't drink soon, his body would shut down out of desperation.

"Seras," Wynter said, "Lets' take him back to headquarters for now. He can explain himself later; the crew are going to want to reclaim their ship."

"True," Seras agreed, "Okay, for appearances' sake, I'm going to restrain you until we reach headquarters," she told him, "But you're not under any form of arrest until further notice. This is only on the condition that you cooperate with us, understood?"

He nodded fervently, "Y-Yes, yes, of course!" he exclaimed.

He allowed his arms to be pinned behind him by the former cop as they made their way out of the dank and dismal hold of the cargo barge. Wynter walked behind them, her wings held loosely at her back.

"Are you a Daywalker?" Seras asked their "captive".

"No, I'm not. I scorch pretty badly." He explained. He jumped when Wynter suddenly threw her shawl over his head and moved to walk beside them, "There. Problem solved." She said cheerily.

Seras had Wynter run ahead to alert the others of the plan. When she and their captive made it outside, she saw that Josephine, Roderick, Wynter, and several of their human comrades had ushered the crowd back and away from the gangplank. It was then that Seras discovered the shawl had another advantage of hiding his identity from the angry crowd. While her companions held them back, she was able to get him down the gangplank and into a spot where she and the others could transport him safely to the bakery. However, this concept was easier said than done, as the incensed crowd fought back against the vampires transporting the captive. The human squad members maneuvered in between to try and add leverage against the growing threat of human onlookers.

"What are you protecting that mongrel for!? Throw him in the bay!" One man yelled from the crowd.

"That monster could've killed us!"

"You'd better not be playing favorites, you freaks!"

"Traitors!"

Finally, Seras's eyes narrowed and she thrust the vampire over to Wynter as she whirled to face the crowd, "That's quite enough!" she yelled, her eyes blazing, "Correct me if I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that you all were very proud of your town that accepts and harbors vampires."

The crowd murmured amongst themselves and one of the young sailors stepped forward, "Well, yes, that's true, but he—"

"—Will be treated the exact same way any human threat would be." Seras finished for him, "The only difference here is he will be dealt with by our vampiric representatives, not your human ones. We do not, will not, and never have played favorites in this town. That is final. Now then, I believe the disaster is over; if all of you will be so kind as to return to your business." She said, nodding politely. The crowd slowly and quietly dispersed, casting furtive glances back at them as they did so.

Wynter breathed a sigh of relief, "Nice work, sis."

"Uh, may I ask where you're taking me?" he chattered nervously. Wynter smiled at him, which made his hair stand on end for some reason, "Not to worry," she chimed, "You're meeting our leader. She's very nice."

"Uh…." He muttered, not sure how to respond to this. Seras sighed heavily, "Great. When Wynter smiles like that, there's trouble brewing."

"Sorry. One of the traits I picked up from Alucard."

"He really is a bad influence on you." She grumbled. She turned to their wary captive, eying him darkly, "You've caused a lot of trouble today. Your explanation had better be damn well worth it." She muttered.

A/N: Nothing much to say…I hope you enjoyed the chapter.