Author's note: I do not own Hellsing, X-men, or their characters. This is a sequel to A Year in American.


Progress and Nausea

Integra was getting rather desperate. She was actually seriously considering setting Alucard loose on some of the X-Men. She was pretty sure that her reactions were more to do with the pregnancy hormones than anything else, but that didn't really help her current mood much. If the vampire who had gotten a mutant involved in this mess was right in front of her now, it would be very dead very quickly. It also didn't help that Alucard had been hovering more than usual. Integra was well aware that her stress levels had increased since the X-Men had arrived in England.

She knew that stress wasn't exactly good for a normal pregnancy, not that hers was normal, but there really wasn't much she could do about it. Getting the X-Men out her hair would probably help though. The current state of affairs had Seras at odds with Jean and Scott which wasn't helpful. On the bright side though, most of the X-Men did follow the young vampire's orders and considered her a legitimate authority. Jean and Scott were still causing Integra headaches though as well as causing tension among the X-Men's ranks. Hopefully, they would be able to locate and eliminate the vampire that was either a mutant or turned a mutant into a ghoul within another week or so. Seras thought they were getting close. There had been more attacks of late, and her people had uncovered quite a few nests. The vampire behind this all seemed to be getting desperate.

That was all well and good. Desperate vampires made dumb mistakes. Dumb mistakes tended to make her job easier. And Integra would take any help she could get right now. A familiar pair of hands began kneading the muscles at the back of her neck. Integra leaned into Alucard's touch. He had gotten very good at appearing just when her back and neck started to bother her. It was his fault after all. She wouldn't have gotten pregnant if it weren't for him. And he didn't have to suffer through swelling feet, mood swings, odd cravings, weight gain, and backaches.

"You're very lucky that I can't easily kill you," Integra commented conversationally. "I wonder what the statistics are on deaths caused by pregnant women. Admittedly, they can't be very high or the human race wouldn't have survived, but really, there has to be a few every year."

Alucard chuckled. "Isn't it fortunate for you that can shoot me whenever you want then?"

Integra just sighed. There was a knock at the office door. "Come."

Seras and Rogue peered into the office. Integra raised an eyebrow. Given the wary looks on of the women's faces, her temper must have been more out of sorts than usual lately. Neither Seras nor Rogue tended to pussyfoot around her.

"I'm not going to attack you. What do you need?"

"Rogue had an idea about a way to perhaps speed our search up some."

That sounded promising. "And the idea is?"

Rogue smiled. "Do you remember when you were living with the X-Men the vampire that was actively turning mutants so he could use their powers when they were ghouls?"

Integra nodded. "Yes. Why?"

"Well, you managed to lure him out by acting as bait. I was thinking that it might not be bad to try something similar." Rogue smiled. "While it might be satisfying to use Jean and Scott, I was actually going to suggest Kitty, myself, and Remy. We can take some of the Wild Geese with us as back up."

It was an intriguing idea. Integra wasn't sure it would work, but it was worth a shot. It really couldn't hurt, and it would give at least some of the X-Men something productive to do. And they could always get lucky and have the ploy work.

"Go ahead. Keep me informed on how it's going."

Seras smiled and nodded. "Will do. With any luck, we'll be able to start the operation tonight."

The two women left the office, and Integra attempted to turn her attention back to her paperwork. Alucard's lips ghosted over her ear.

"You need to take a break, Master. There is nothing left here that can't wait, and you are cranky."

She frowned at him. She was a little hungry and her back hurt. She wasn't an invalid. "I'm fine, Alucard. Don't you have someone else to bother?"

The vampire chuckled. "But where's the fun in that? I'll have Walter send up tea and a snack."

Integra threw her paperweight at him. Alucard just laughed and phased out of the room. She turned her attention back to her work. It wasn't long at all before Walter appeared with a tea tray. Her butler didn't make any comments which Integra appreciated as she immediately helped herself to tea and scones. She had a definite sweet tooth these days, and the baby seemed to make her always hungry. Being pregnant really was a pain. Especially when you worked in a male dominated aristocracy. Her meeting with the Council of Twelve had been less than pleasant lately. Integra had no clue why middle aged men thought they knew more about being pregnant than she did, but they seemed convinced. Integra did not need their advice on the matter. If it had been their wives on the other hand, she might have listened. They were the ones who did all the hard work during a pregnancy.

As she applied herself to the scones and the paperwork, Integra spared a moment of thought for the little sting operation Seras and Rogue were putting together. She was actually hoping it would work. Nothing else had so far, and Integra was definitely ready to get this whole mess over with. And it would be interesting to see just what they came up with to attract the vampire in question.