Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

Author's Note(s): OKAY! So this is the flashback chapter! WOOOH! YAY! LOL It is sort of like a sum up of all the year she spent there, but I'm sure I'll be filling in some blanks throughout the story. :3

Firstly, I want to apologize if Kassy is OOC, but outside some fanfics and the episodes he was in on "Spider-Man: The Animated Series" I don't have that much knowledge on his way of speaking LOL so I'm working off of that… so yeah… XD Please bare with me, and if you have any suggestions, I wouldn't be opposed to hearing them provided they are via PM. Many thanks.

Fiend: Definitions- 1. Devil: an evil supernatural being, especially a devil from hell.

2. Somebody evil: somebody regarded as wicked or cruel.

3. Troublemaker: a mischievous or annoying person, especially a child.

4. Somebody with strong interest: an ardent enthusiast of a subject or activity.

Enjoy and please review! :3


"Hellsing: The Dusk"


"Fiend is like Friend without the R"

~Flashback.~

Elizabeth had only been about ten years old at the time, and after the incident that brought her to be in a strange facility called "the Cage", she had been placed in a large, white cell. It was curiously circular; like walking into a tunnel.

Some time had passed and it appeared as if not another living soul was around. There was of course a cell opposite hers. It had a glass front with white bars and like hers, and it had a little bathroom area that gave you privacy for doing what you needed to.

However, it was empty. And it stayed that way for how long, she wasn't sure. It wasn't very easy to keep time when you didn't even know what day it had been when you were imprisoned.

None of the guards or anyone else who worked there spoke to her unless they were giving orders, or the ones teaching her in her studies were explaining things, or that dreadful Dr. Asher…

The brunette REALLY didn't like Dr. Asher very much… there was something off about her that made Liz prefer her solitude in the desolate white cell to the woman's unwelcome and detestable company. But no matter who the people that worked there were, they all seemed to like keeping her in the dark.

Only the occasional guard would come by for a routine sweep to make sure all was well. And they weren't allowed to talk to her. She figured this out after having yelled at each one for quite a while.

But then, one day, there was more than the usual sound of the guard patrolling. It sounded like some sort of violent struggling of something being pulled at and more than one person talking. And one of them sounded very odd; like he was going back between angry and manically happy, and sometimes both all at once!

And when they came into view, she saw that it was about four guards surrounding one man who was being wheeled in on a dolly in one of those weird straightjackets they put on her that was designed to immobilize you if they pressed a button and a funny yet scary looking mask that covered his mouth with metal and straps.

One of the guards was holding that button as he walked in front to unlock all the doors. Another guard pushed the man with disheveled red hair and wild looking green eyes, while the other two aimed sonic based weapons at him to stop him if he tried anything they didn't like.

The redhead fought and jerked at his restraints as he spoke; seeming unable or unwilling to stay still, as he took glee in the anxiety he was causing the soldiers who already didn't like having to be around him.

He spoke animatedly; going on a rant about how "good it was to be home" and laughing like a madman before they tossed him like a sack of potatoes into the cell across from hers.

He landed flat on his face and didn't move. For a minute she worried he might be dead as one guards took the jacket and mask off and then gave the prisoner a sharp kick to the ribs; which set the man off into another wild fit of laughter as he rolled over onto his back while the men left.

The guard who had unlocked the doors was one of the men who usually patrolled the corridor, and he spared Liz a pitying glance before shaking his head and following the others out of there. Leaving the girl and the madman all alone.

Elizabeth had been hiding behind the privacy wall of her bathroom and the redhead had yet to notice her as he cackled away. A hand covered the spot where he'd been kicked, but he made no move to try and soothe it or get off the floor for a while.

The brunette wasn't sure what to do or if she even wanted to be noticed. He seemed rather interesting but also very dangerous and not like someone you wanted to meet while you were both outside the safety of the cells… but something about him made her feel like they shared some kind of connection… it was strange, and it made the symbiotic creature bound to her give a little squirm of uncertainty.

The laughter slowly died down and the man sat up like a puppet with its strings being jerked. He was facing her direction and the girl gave a tiny gasp at the sudden movement and ducked behind the wall.

A little blur and noise caught his attention and he quirked an eyebrow as he leaned forward on his hands and knees. Huh… that was funny. Normally the cell across from his was empty. Had they put someone over there? Well, one way to find out!

"Hey… heeeeeey… hellooooo? I know there's someone in there." He called out in a singsong way. Then he heard a soft rustle of movement like the person was shying away, and he smirked.

"You're behind that stupid little privacy wall. I can hear you ya know." A brief pause and he was positive someone was there now. They hadn't given him enough drugs for him to be trippin' ballz right now and he knew it.

"Come on ooooout. I can't hurt you while you're in there." He said with a mad little giggle. And after a few minutes, just when he thought maybe he was hallucinating, he saw the uncertain face of a bonny little brunette peek out at him.

"Huh…?" He was completely puzzled now. Was that… a kid… in a freakin' prison cell?! He crawled closer to try and see her better; pressing his forehead against the glass. She looked rather scared and unsure.

"Awwwwww, don't be scared little kiddie." He cooed; trying to draw her out for a better look. He'd never really minded kids… unless they got in the way of what he was doing, or he thought they were annoying… or he was on one of his murderous rampages. Okay, so he had a lot of reasons he ended up hurting kids, but that still didn't take away from the fact that he still didn't mind the nice ones. There were some he hadn't slaughtered.

He could play nice when he wanted to. And it seemed to work. The lithe form of a little girl came out from behind the screen and his crazy grin spread across his face. She looked like a little doll! One of those pretty porcelain ones with the big, expressive glass eyes your mother or grandmother would tell you not to touch because you might break it.

She had short brown hair that had a sort of silvery tint to it in the bright florescent lights they had all over the place, and she was wearing a white uniform like the one they always made him wear, but hers was obviously too big for her since it was unusual for them to have kids here, much less as prisoners.

The redhead made an encouraging come hither gesture with his hand and she took another cautious step forward; keeping one hand clutching the wall behind her like it could possibly be used as a shield in case she needed it. He couldn't help how amused that made him.

"Thaaaat's it dollface… it's okay. You're safe in there. Especially with me in here." He giggled again and was a little surprised that she managed a little smile. Even if she still seemed uncertain about what she was doing.

"So… does the pretty little doll have a name?" He asked in a honey voice; his hands now pressing up against the glass a little above on either side of his head. She opened her mouth to speak, but then hesitated.

"Oh. I see… Can't talk to strangers, huh? Well, seeing as you can't get any stranger than me, I'll go first!" He chuckled again and suddenly stood up.

"The name's Cletus Kasady, M'lady! At your service!" He said with a comical English accent and gave an overdramatic bow. The cute sound of a giggle snapped his head back up to grin at the girl. She thought he was funny. So he decided to leave out the part about him being Carnage for now.

"Like that eh? Glad to finally have a captive audience!" And as he cackled at his own joke, Liz couldn't help joining in with a laugh of her own. The guy wasn't as scary as he had seemed before. Weird yes, but he seemed to be behaving nicely for now.

"I… I'm Elizabeth Hellsing…" The girl replied in kind; giving him a cute curtsey that she had been taught to do whenever in the presence of her aunt Integra when she used to visit her… before she ended up in this place.

"Nice to meet you Mr. Kasady." She greeted politely. He waved his hand airily and laughed.

"Call me Kassy!" He told her jovially, and she smiled and nodded.

"Well little Lizzy! What're you in for, hmm? Knock over a candy store?" He snickered at his own joke as he watched her figure out what "knocking over a candy store" meant.

"N-no… I don't really know why I'm here…" Liz said sorrowfully. The murderer raised a brow as he rubbed his chin and cocked his head to one side.

"How can ya not know? Didn't they tell you anything?" This seemed to dampen her spirits even more.

"Uh uh…" She replied as she shook her head. And this puzzled the super villain.

"Huh, that's odd. Normally I can't get 'em to shut up about why I'm here." He kneeled back down on his knees so he could be eye level with her again.

"What happened before you got here? Do you know that?" He asked with a surprisingly calm and soft voice. He may seem like a psychopath to most, but he was really more along the lines of a sociopath since he DID know how to talk to people; though it was mostly to manipulate them.

"Yeah… kinda…" She mumbled as she bit her lip and then looked up from the floor to look at him. He gave her a bright smile.

"That's okay! I forget stuff too! Trust me when I say it'll come back to ya soon. Until then, it might help to tell me what you do know." Liz blinked and felt touched. This man, who was obviously in here because he was supposed to be bad, was the first person to actually ask her what had happened since her aunt when she called the woman and to have shown her any real kindness.

"O-okay… it was… cold. Really cold!" The lass shivered at the memory and briefly closed her eyes.

"And dark… I remember those best. The cold and the darkness… like I was swallowed up by a snow monster or something…" The little brunette spoke slowly as she tried to recall what she could. Cletus listened patiently; liking how the story was starting.

"And… my parents… I heard my mom scream really bad. It scared me and I remember I tried to help, but not why. There was red everywhere…!" Liz whispered that last bit with a morbid fascination that made her eyes grow large for a moment before she trembled in fear. Kasady smirked as he shuddered too; but for completely different reasons.

"Then I was all alone… It was dark and white out at the same time. My neck hurt something awful… and then there were these loud sounds and more red. Then the cold came and the blackness gobbled me up! A-and then… people came and I don't really know how, but I ended up here." The explanation ended with Liz looking very confused as she bit her bottom lip again.

But overall, her tale of terror had kept the criminal captivated and practically glued to the glass; his forehead and hands pressing against it as his fingers flexed every now and then at certain parts of her story.

"My, mmmyyyyyyy, what an ordeal you've been through little Lizzy!" He cooed comfortingly; though his eyes sparkled with sadistic delight. She just nodded slowly and frowned at the wall before looking at him with curious silver-blue orbs.

"Why are you here Kassy?" It was a tentative question as she didn't want to upset her friend with prying, but he had asked her so it seemed fair.

"Oooooh. Now THAT is a long story! And I'm not sure if an innocent doll could handle it." Cletus said with a mock look of concern. Liz pouted a little.

"I can too!" She countered childishly.

"Hmmm… I don't knoooooow… might give ya nightmares!" His eyes darkened giddily and his fingers wriggled upon emphasis of the last word. But it only strengthened her resolve. She was brave! She'd been doing really good since she ended up in here and hardly even cried anymore! She would show him!

"I already have those!" At this he eyed her with a rather insane little smirk.

"Dooooooooo you now?" The creepy tone as he leered at her made the girl give a little "Eeep!" as she took a few steps back; wrapping her arms protectively around herself before giving a hesitant nod. Kasady gave a cackle. The kid was too cute when she was scared!

"Well then! I don't see why not! But just remember kid… you can't un-hear it!" The redhead giggled again before he waited for her to give an incline of her bonny little head. Then, he regaled her with his horrific tale of his life as Cletus Kasady: murder extraordinaire and spreader of chaos! The original artist of anarchy!

The way he told it though, was the way he saw it all. Not the way the media or the cops or any of those drooling morons told it. He spoke of what he had done as an artist would of their work. And though there were parts of it that she found frightening, a lot of it that he told her made a strange sort of sense, and she ended up feeling a little bad for him.

Cletus only told her a little of his stories at a time, so that way they'd have something to look forward to and talk about every day. It was like a chaotic bedtime story type of deal.

They eventually got to talking about why she was there again. Mostly because Kasady could sense something different about her that made her similar to him. And at first he couldn't put a finger on it. But then… he remembered what the Cage facility was all about! Or mostly anyway. And that, was symbiotes!

He eagerly asked her if she had one, but the girl had no idea what the heck he was talking about. So he decided to show her instead! She gasped with concern as he bit his finger hard enough to bleed, and the fact that she was actually worried about him made him cackle.

The dark crimson didn't drip like normal blood, because it wasn't normal blood. It was his symbiote! And the red liquid quickly formed into a perpetually shifting mass of red and black that began to cover his body.

And now, he gazed down at the little girl in his true form. The mask of razor sharp, demonic looking teeth and huge, frightening white eyes that was in fact, what he considered to be his real face!

Carnage now stood before the astonished child and she wasn't sure if she should scream or gasp in awe at what she saw! He looked like a creature straight from the most terrifying of nightmares.

The kind that could make the Boogeyman wet his pants. But there was something about it that caused the young lass to walk right up to her glass and press her hands against it as her nose brushed the cool surface; her lips parted as she could only look up at him with morbid interest.

"I showed you mine. Now show me yours!" The criminal cackled madly at the innocent innuendo as he spoke in that eerie voice that made it sound like more than one person talking at once. Liz was still too young to get grownup jokes like that, but it made her blush a little because of the teasing way he said it and the new voice he said it with. He was quite the playful type and took delight in teasing her.

Now she understood what he meant about the alien goop. And so, it was her turn to show off her symbiote. Liz was still getting used to having it, so it took a bit of concentration before she coaxed it into forming a suit like his did. She had only used it for clothing and didn't know about the sentient goops real potential.

Carnage gasped as he saw the small symbiotic girl. He crouched down on all fours; his mouth hanging open and making him look more menacing as he stared at her. Her suit was in a similar pattern to his. Except instead of red it had an icy blue.

And she had hair! It was more like very fine, hair-like snow white tendrils that the symbiote created, but it was the same length and flowed about her bonny little head wispily. Her mask didn't cover the bottom half of her face like his did though, and so the lower half of her face was exposed around the mouth.

Her lips were icy blue and when she went to smile widely at the look of surprise on his face, that was similar to the one she had moments ago, he grinned to see that her teeth were as deadly looking as his own, except they had a more delicate, pearly white look to them that just suited the girl.

She looked so cute! He'd never seen a kid symbiote before! It made him giggle psychotically before going on a full blown maniacal fit of laughter. Liz tilted her head to the side a little; wondering what was so funny. But then, he became a bit infectious and she ended up giggling some too.

The symbiotic slaughterer began thinking of the possibilities that this rare opportunity posed. Here was this sweet and innocent little orphan, who was pretty smart for her age, and she had a freakin' symbiote!

Now, what kind of opportunist would he be if he didn't work with that? He could have a damn apprentice if he wanted! Someone to carry on all of his wonderfully wicked work when he was gone!

And knowing how he lived, he could end up dead at any time really. SO! Since he doubted he was gonna want to have a kid of his own, and this one came without all the extra work, he could claim this little doll for himself!

Yep! He was such a genius sometimes that it gave him chills! When his laughter died, he and Elizabeth had a little back and forth of questions before he began to tell her about the symbiote and how it worked. But he made her promise not to tell anyone else that he was teaching her this.

Or else they'd get in trouble and they'd probably move him and she'd be all alone again! This put the fear he wanted to into the child and she eagerly promised because she didn't want to lose anyone else. And Carnage played and preyed on this fear with skill and glee!

Liz knew she should be VERY wary of this man. She knew that she was supposed to think of him like a monster; like other people he'd told her about seemed to think, but it was very hard to see the only friendly source of company you had as such. Especially when he showed her more kindness than even her aunt had.

She hadn't even seen the woman! The only contact that had been between them had been that one phone call after the whole incident, and then after that, she had been told that the Cage would be her new home until arrangements could be made.

However… as the years passed, with no end in sight to the scheduled session of forced lessons and training like she was some kind of solider or experiment they didn't want but put up with anyway, she grew less and less hopeful that she would ever step foot into the outside world again…

But that didn't mean she didn't do her hardest to keep the spark of hope alive. If she gave up… then… No! She couldn't and she wouldn't! Liz had to be brave and make it out of here when Integra came for her. Then, they'd figure everything out together and be happy again! With a strong resolve and much desire to be free and find the ones responsible for the horrors that came to pass, the lass was sure her aunt would come get her sooner or later! Right…?

Carnage on the other hand, had made many grand escapes from the Cage. He'd stay a while until he could get out; which spanned anywhere from a few weeks to a few months at a time. And every time he was going to escape, he would offer to take her with him. But sadly, she would decline.

Elizabeth had promised her Aunt Integra that she would stay where she was and do as she was told when the woman told her to be good and behave. Because when the time was right, she would send for her. But for now, it was better for everyone if Liz just stayed in the prison-like facility.

The murderous madman would've just taken her out of that place against her will, but what with the way they treated the kid like their personal pet weapon or experiment, he knew that all hell would probably reign down on him and they'd probably kill him off for good just to get her back.

Couldn't have such a promising lil snowcap falling into the hands of someone like him, now could they? And as for the snowcap comment, that was one of his little teasing terms of endearment for Liz when they discovered her icy abilities.

If he could have risked it, he would've freed her of the stupid prison. But he couldn't have someone fighting him the whole way. He'd probably end up getting pissed off and killing her. And that would just be a waste.

So, he would simply regale her with all he saw and did while he was out of the clink. And it stroked his ego to see that the poor girl hung on his every word. The only knowledge she had of the outside world was just the memories she'd had, and since she had only been ten at the time, that wasn't really much to go on.

Apart from that, she did have her lessons which taught her stuff. But reading wasn't the same as being able to see it or feel it. And sometimes, when he remembered and had the chance, he would steal something and smuggle it in to her when he got caught again; since it seemed to be inevitable. He'd hide it around someplace she went to for lessons or whatever when he busted out again so she could collect it.

"Stupid heroes… they ruin everything!" Was one of the things he often said when he'd get in an angry rant. And it was times like that when she just sat quietly and listened. And when he got really bad, she would have to hide as she didn't like it when the guards came to "calm him down" since it consisted of them beating and drugging him into a near comatose state.

Thanks to Kassy, her stay there wasn't as bad as it had been. He was like the crazy uncle she never knew she wanted to have. And when the day finally came when an elderly English gentleman by the name of Ferguson (but he said she could call him Peter) came to collect her, she felt torn.

She wanted to stay around Kassy, but Liz was raised by her parents (before this whole mess happened) that her word was her bond! And she had made a promise to her aunt to wait to be fetched. It had been very hard on the poor young woman. She was surprised how he laughed when she told him she had to leave.

It was like he wasn't worried about missing her. And at first it had hurt, but when she asked why, the redhead simply told her they were connected now. Whether they liked it or not. And that they would cross paths again one day, when the time came…

The brunette really hated the phrase "when the time was right" or "when the time comes" because it gave her a sense of false hope. But when the madman had told her with that crazy grin of his, she couldn't help smiling and feeling like he actually meant it.

Though, things did end up being rather chaotic when Carnage took advantage of the security being busy with her departure (though why it was such a big deal she never understood) to make a break for it.

The lass couldn't help smiling whenever he had one of his grand escapes. It was a wonder they managed to keep him as long as they did. You'd think they'd have learned by now that you can't contain chaos like that.

And as Peter ended up having to send word to the Hellsing Organization via post because her leaving was delayed a bit, she couldn't help wondering how life was going to be now, and if she'd ever see Kassy again.

Little did she know that since they had symbiotes, that he could always find her when he wanted to. But for now… he'd let her go off and do whatever the heck it was that she wanted. Let her be reunited with that snobby bitch who let her rot here for all those years and see just how little the woman actually cared for her after all…

And when the opportunity arose, he'd swoop in and claim his icy little apprentice and together, they'd drown the world in cold blood and chaos!

~End Flashback~

Elizabeth sighed somberly at the bittersweet nostalgia. She had flitted in and out of it all day when she wasn't busy with her menial chores. And as the troubled lass sat on a windowsill and stared blankly out at nothing in particular while her thoughts consumed her, she found herself drawn from them when she heard the sound of someone speaking fast and fearfully nearby…


To be continued...!

WOW! That was a long one! XD

So, basically, most of Elizabeth's internal conflict stems from the tragedy she suffered (which I'll go into more later if it isn't obvious already :D ) combined with what Carnage said to try and manipulate her into basically being his "mini me", and what she was told by her loved ones and the people at the facility.

Her parents, Integra, and the people at the Cage all tried to teach her what was right and what was wrong. But with Carnage, she began to see that not everything is so black and white, and that there is a whole LOT of grey (and red too if Carnage has any say LOL). So she basically has to try and figure out for herself what is right for HER and so forth. Which is hard sometimes due to the headtrip Kasady pretty much dumped on her for all those years. Lmfao.

Trippy huh? Yeah, I love tormenting my characters. Helps them develop better! XD

Also, I keep reading Ferguson's name in different ways. Lmfao I've seen it spelled like three different ways now, so I'm just keeping it the way I have it. XD

Well! Until next chapter... thanks for all your luv and support/reviews! X3 They're great and ya'll rock! Tootles you lovelies you! LoL

Remember to review! :3