A/N some of you have joined me from tumblr! Hi, please feel free to review. I got a good one for you here, my children uwu more Hope/Alucard fluff? I don't think fluff is the right word for what they have.

It truly felt like I had no one to go to anymore. I was too scared to message Chrissy and find out just how much she'd forgotten about what I'd told her. I thought that maybe she'd forgotten me entirely. As for Alucard gloating that he was right... well, that pissed me off more than anything. I didn't want to see him, let alone train with him.

But of course I had to. It was a direct order.

A year ago I wouldn't have seen myself taking orders from an old lady. It wasn't a change of morals or anything, I really did feel like I had a duty to serve and protect Integra. It was like an instinct, in a way. I suppose I felt similarly about serving Alucard, except from when I was around him, that is. Granted he had saved my life multiple times and even saved me from something terrible from happening to me, but whenever I thought I was making any sort of emotional breakthrough he'd swat me away like a fly.

A year ago, I wouldn't have seen myself so depressed. A year ago, I wouldn't have let myself get pushed over so easy. A lot of things had changed since a year ago most of which weren't for the better.

I sighed, leaning back in my chair. I peered at the clock on the wall and braced myself for my 'visitor'.

"Get up."

I did as I was told reluctantly.

"Garden."

Again, I did as I was told.

"Stand over there. Quicker."

"What's the rush?" I questioned. I didn't get an answer.

I stood on the lawn as Alucard stood on the decking, leering down on me with a stern face. I could tell he didn't want to be there, which made two of us.

"A vampire must be ready for any kind of attack. They must be quick and responsive, always alert of every sound in the wind. They must be aware of every breath of any being in their presence, monster or man. Most importantly: a vampire must assess the level of skill of an enemy in less than a moment. You don't just draw your sword and pray you'll win. You need to know you'll win."

"So hear everything, see everything, analyse everything and be cocky. Okay. I got it."

"You're not taking this seriously, Nightingale," he glowered, "don't let this be a waste of your time as well as mine."

"Okay, whatever, sorry..."

"Your choice of weapon is also vital. A vampire mustn't rely on any form of defence. They need to choose something which agrees with their soul."

"That makes sense, but my sword is made from my shadow. How more suitable for me could that get?"

"Your shadow can be easily broken."

"What? No it can't. Trust me."

He smirked, "You doubt me?"

"Yes, I doubt you."

"Why don't you prove me wrong, Nightingale?"

What was he getting at?

"Fine. I will." I manifested my sword, making sure it was strong and formed properly. I put all my energy into making sure it was solid and secure. I had to prove him wrong.

"Strike me," he instructed. Finally. I brought my sword down on him. He blocked it with a gun he drew from his pocket and it made a loud ptang noise. I tried again, going for the other side, but he did the same with another gun. Without warning he moved his arms in a way that I was knocked backwards and he smiled smugly at that. Right then. This is how he was going to do this? I lunged again, going for the chest, only to find myself being booted backwards. I felt my rib crack and I yell out.

"What the hell?" I held my injury, "You broke my rib?!"

"Strike me."

Anger began bubbling inside me and I did as I was told, bring my sword down shoulder. He quickly turned around to get out of the way, grabbed my weapon from behind him and yanked it from my hands. He then crushed it with a tight squeeze of his palm and it broke in half before turning to dust. He wore a smug expression on his face as if to say 'I told you so', which pissed me off even more. I made another sword and attacked him again with more intent, kneeing him in the stomach as hard as I could. That did some damage because he made a gagging noise and blood came from his mouth. I used this window to try and stab him in the chest, but as soon as the blade made contact with his body he grabbed it and crushed it again.

"Fuck!" I was frustrated and tired. I had no idea how strong he actually was when he'd had time to recharge and he was really, really strong.

"I think my point has been proven," he said, wiping blood from his lip, "Someone at headquarters will sort you out with a new physical weapon soon. One that can actually stay composed."

"So where are your guns from, then?" I asked, "They withstood even Darius' attacks. Do you think I could get something similar?"

"I doubt it," he answered stiffly, "the previous butler made them for me to defeat Alexander Anderson."

"And the previous butler is...?" I'd barely heard about Walter in all the time I'd been with Hellsing. I had snooped in the archives room one time and most of them were signed by a 'Walter C Dornez'. I asked Seras about him a few times but she always got sad and changed the subject, and Integra always ignored his name as if he was nothing. Something big must have happened for him to be wiped from the Hellsing name, especially since there were traces of him everywhere.

"He sided with Millennium after serving the Hellsing family for over fifty years. He threw everything away for the opportunity to fight me in battle. I played his game for a while, and then left him to rot."

"That's... nice..." That explained it. "So why would you keep the weapons of a traitor?"

"Walter was less than dirt in the end but these are simply exceptional."

I rolled my eyes. Then, I was suddenly very aware of the broken bone in my chest and I couldn't help but let out a noise of pain. "Ohh, shit..."

"Aren't you going to fix your rib?" Alucard asked, as if it was an easy thing to do .

"I'm sorry, I hadn't thought of that!" I hissed, holding onto myself, "Don't you think if I knew how I would have done it already?"

"Watch your tongue. As I've told you before, it's all about intent. "

"Yeah, I can't do squat with 'intent', Alucard. Darius was a piece of shit and all, but effectively taught me how to use my powers." I got lost in thought for a moment. Darius hadn't come across my mind in a very long time. I no longer had nightmares of him and he was nothing more than a thing of the past for me. Looking back on how he'd taught me to form my shadow and apply it... I was sad about how things had turned out. There was a time where I genuinely thought that he wanted to be my father and nothing else.

"Don't get distracted," Alucard said, raising his voice at me, "My brother used you for his own desires. He trained you to turn you against your Masters. As for your broken bones, all you need to do is tell your body to fix them. It's important that you know how to heal yourself. It'll save your life in the future."

"So I just say to myself 'heal'?"

"Essentially, yes."

"Okay, but if this doesn't work, I swear to God-" I breathed deeply and took Alucard's advice. To my bewilderment, there was a popping sensation which made me jolt backwards and the pain gone, "What the-"

"You see?" he said, "Intent."

A few days later

I sat on my sofa with a packet of blood, feeling drowsy and frankly, sad. I don't know where my low mood came from but it didn't feel good. I thought it might be PMS or something but I'd literally just had my period a week ago, so that thought became unlikely. I reckoned it was the loneliness again. Surprisingly Alucard wasn't the most pleasant of company to have, especially when the only reason he came over was to tell me what to do.

My doorbell rang and to my utter confusion it was Chrissy. I blinked, at her, not sure how to handle it.

"So I have a lot to say, Hope," she said. What?

"Chrissy, I-"

"Look, I didn't actually forget anything. Your uncle told me to act like I did to help you. He really wants the best for you and so do I."

He said that? Alucard of all people said he wanted what was best for me?

"Gotta say, now I'm kind of embarrassed," I grumbled. Chrissy laughed at me, hugging me tightly.

"Whatever's going on with you, I don't care," she said, "you're my best friend and I'd do anything for you. I care and I don't want you to feel alone in all of this."

"Really?" My heart was full to hear these words. I couldn't stop smiling and my cheeks were flushing at the amount of love I was being given.

"Really. And besides..." she pulled away, "Now I can tell people I got big fat lesbian crush on a vampire which is kind of cool."

"We're not quite there yet," I joked. There was a knock on the door, halting our heart to heart, "one sec." Jeremy was standing in the doorway with a quizzical expression on his snobby face. I groaned. He was the last person I wanted to see. "Yes, Jeremy?"

"A man claiming to be your father just had a conversation with me. He says he's in town to visit. You got some explaining to do."

And in a single second, my happiness drained out of my body and replacing it was pure fear. My stomach dropped and all I could hear was a buzzing sound in my ears.

"She doesn't have to explain anything," Chrissy snapped, "her dad is a deadbeat and a scoundrel."

"I don't know what to tell you, Cristina. He looked like her uncle and had an accent so it adds up-"

The two bickered while the world stopped turning for me. My mind raced: he was turned to ash. I made sure of it. How could he be alive? What reason would Jeremy have to lie? Did he want attention? What was going on?

"Hope." Chrissy shook my shoulder lightly, "you okay?"

"I-..." I couldn't talk. This couldn't be real.

"You look like you've seen a ghost."

My fears were all confirmed there and then. I thought maybe I was imagining it but I wasn't. Everything in my life fell apart in that moment. Right there in my doorway standing next to Jeremy was Darius, as tall and as menacing as ever.

"Ah, this the fellow I was talking about," Jeremy said.

"Y-you can't be here," I managed to say, "y-you..."

"Whatever past you two have had, I think it's the time for reconcile," Jeremy added.

"Jeremy, get out. Right now."

"Wha-"

"Get out of my house. Right now."

"Hope, that's not-"

"-Get the fuck out."

He raised his eyebrows and sighed, shaking his head, "clearly you're emotional so I'll leave you be. Cristina, it was nice to see you again. And Darius was it? Nice to meet you." He shook Darius' hand and went back to his obnoxious car.

"Chrissy," I said, not taking my eyes off Darius, "go in the downstairs bathroom and don't come out until I tell you."

She didn't ask any questions. She nervously glanced at Darius, and hurried to the bathroom. I heard the door lock and I immediately unleashed my sword. My hands trembled horribly and my shadow flickered weakly. This was bad. This was so fucking bad.

"Y-you shouldn't be here," I said, my voice shaking, "I turned you to ash. I drained you. You were nothing!"

"I, oh, what's that phrase? 'Rose like a Phoenix'," he answered pompously, "you should know by now that I won't be taken down so easily."

"So I'll just do it again!" I crashed my weapon down, trying to cut him in half. My sword was immediately halted by his hands. He gripped tightly at the blade, not even getting wounded by it. His skin was impenetrable and his strength was outstanding so I tried to push down harder, grunting in effort, but he was far too powerful. He yanked my sword from my hands and smirked as he easily snapped it in two. He dropped it and it disappeared in a puff of green smoke. All I could think about is how Alucard would say 'I told you so'.

"It's adorable how you have a little human pet," Darius remarked, "sweet little thing, isn't she? I can see why you like having her around."

"Don't you lay a finger on her," I growled. Where the hell was Alucard when I needed him?

"Please, I am not here to hurt either of you. I wanted to pay you a little visit. I bring nothing but an olive branch."

"You're not welcome here!" I attacked him, kicking him hard on the chest. The force made him stumble backwards a few paces and he exhaled sharply.

"You shouldn't have done that." I was backhanded hard around the face, my nose getting clipped in the process. I was knocked aside to the ground, blood instantly dripping from my injured face. I shot back up, grabbing him with my shadow, only to have it engulfed by his. I felt the pain of it being suffocated but I mustered up enough strength to worm it out from his hold. I launched my fist hard into his groin and elbowed his chin. This seemed to do some damage but when I went to make my next blow he blocked it and his hands grabbed my throat. He pushed me up against the wall, lifting me off the ground in the process. I struggled and kicked, doing anything I could to get out of the restraint. His shadow hovered maliciously in the shape of blades in front of my face and I couldn't help but stare into his soulless eyes.

"I-I'm your daughter," I tried, "P-please don't do this."

"I look at you and I see Donna," he said, softening slightly. Something changed in his eyes; a hint of regret maybe? Good, I could use that. "Everything about you... your face, your fiery personality...it makes me sad that it has to be this way."

"It doesn't! It doesn't... please, Father! Look the other way."

"Father? You've never called me that before..." his hands loosened their grip but he was still pressing against my throat.

"You know it's the way I've always felt since meeting you..." I spoke lower, "you are my family. You are what I have left. You know that's true."

"Family..."

I held his arms lightly and caressed him.

"I know you feel the same way. Please... I wouldn't beg if I weren't telling the truth."

He stared at me, taking in everything I was saying. His demeanour wasn't threatening anymore and he wasn't as tense.

"Daughter..." he sighed, gently brushing hair away from my face. He pulled me in to kiss my forehead. I hugged him in return and he completely relax, as if the motion was a relief to him. He inhaled deeply, clutching onto me as if he'd been waiting to hear those words for a long time.

I used this opportunity to form my sword again and stab him in the back. He was quicker, pinning my arms above my head and pressing his knee against my stomach so I couldn't move.

"You sly little bitch!" I spat in his face and he hit me before going back to strangling me. "I offer an olive branch and you burn it," he hissed to me, absorbing my pain and getting pleasure out of it, "Just like everything else in your pathetic life, you burn it."

"What do you want from me?" I choked, "You've already taken everything I have!"

"Not everything, it seems. Not yet. And every time I come up with something you're always there to interfere. I simply can't have that, darling daughter. I think it's time I clip the Nightingale's wings." Out of nowhere in a aggression-fuelled motion he stomped hard on my leg. The bone cracked loudly and I screamed in agony. "Oh, how I've missed that sound... and the best part is: my brother isn't here to save you."

"But I am!" a voice shouted. Darius yelled out as Chrissy came behind him and stabbed him in the throat with a knife. She stepped away, the item still impaled in his neck.

"You have just made a grave mistake, human."

Chrissy cried out as she was tossed across the hall, shards of Darius' shadow embedded in her chest and arms. I was dropped to the floor as he goes to finish her off, my broken leg buckling painfully underneath my weight. I had to act fast. He was going to kill the most important person in my life and there was no way in hell I'd let that happen again.

Adrenaline pumped through my veins and I shot up. I grabbed Darius with my shadow, restraining him long enough for me to pick up Chrissy and limp out of the house. I formed my aura into wings and I flew up into the sky, making a get away.

I look behind me to see if he was following us and saw him standing in the doorway smiling. He clicked his fingers and my childhood home was instantly set ablaze. Nearly every good memory I had happened in that house and just like that, it was gone too.

My attention returned to my friend who was breathing unevenly, clinging onto me for dear life.

"H-hope..." she murmured through her bloodied lips.

"it's alright honey," I assured her, "I'm getting us somewhere safe."

The trip to London was short. There wasn't time to go through the doors and past security so I did the only thing that would get Chrissy instant medical attention. I found the large windows of Integra's study and smashed through them, my tired body tumbling to the ground.

"Hope? What on earth-" Integra saw the girl in my arms and shot up from behind her desk, pulling me into a sitting position. At this point, I was hysterical, crying and shaking and not being able to form proper words. I tried to stand up, forgetting about my broken leg and fell back down heavily. Gene went to Chrissy, checking her vitals and used material of his shirt to tie pressure onto her most serious wounds.

"Hope, you're covered in- what happened?" Unintelligible breathy blabber came out of my mouth and she put her hand on my shoulder, peering at me carefully, "breathe, servant, and then tell me."

"D-Darius," I stammered, "I don't know how but he's... he's- he's alive..."

"What?" Alucard's voice was loud and boomed across the room. I hadn't noticed he was there until then.

"Alucard..." He approached me and helped me stand up. I whimpered through my tears, holding onto his jacket tightly and feeling assured in his presence, "He's alive and behind everything... everything! But we burned him to dust, there's no way he could resurrect himself, there's no way... there's no way..."

"Hush, Nightingale, and fix your leg," he instructed, quieter this time.

"I-I can't, I'm so sorry ... I tried to fight him but he's too powerful...I-" He shushed me again, rolling up his sleeve and offered me his arm and I didn't hesitate to drink from him. I felt the warmth flowing through my body and my bone snapped itself back into place. That's a sensation I'll never get used to. I pulled my mouth away, taking a moment to regain my composure. I looked up at my Master, terrified to my very core, and I noticed through his eyes that deep down he was too.

"Alucard," I muttered, "What do we do?"

"The only thing we can do, little bird," he answered, "we prepare."

A/N you guys aren't ready for what I have in store for you.