Author's Note: Gah, I'm sorry I'm so slow in updating. I haven't had much time to write cuz my mom gets wicked mad at my dad for being a huge jerk so we go out and drive to nowhere for a whole day :D. Fantastic. There's nothing to do and mom doesn't shut up...not to mention an obnoxious 2-year-old brother.

Hah, well I'll shutup now. I hope you enjoy the chapterrr :D

Anderson carried me most of the way to our destination, but after a few hours of sitting in the same position and having nothing to entertain myself, I got bored and asked him to let me down. From his arms, it felt like he was walking slowly, but now that I had a different reference point, I realized just how fast he was.

"So how much further do we have to go?" I asked, kicking a pebble down the sidewalk and chasing after it, covering up for the fact that I had to jog to keep up with him.

"Not much. It's right up here," he replied. "Maxwell has rented a suite in a nearby hotel. He wanted to keep a closer eye on Hellsing. He says he would have built a new base but he didn't have the patience."

"Oh, so he's here," I said, rolling my eyes.

"What? Did something happen between the two of you?"

"He asked me to join you guys and I refused. He's going to think I changed my mind."

"Don't worry, I'll set him straight," Anderson assured me, holding open the front door of an enormous building and motioning for me to enter first.

"No, no I'm sure I can handle hi-"

"Excuse me, Miss," a voice interrupted from before me. "but I can't let you in with that weapon."

Looking up, I saw a teenaged boy standing behind a desk, at the other side of the room. I walked over to him and smoothed out the fabric on the front of my bloodstained sweatshirt (which the young man hadn't even been concerned with), showing the badge that Integra had issued me.

"And if that doesn't help, I'm with this guy," I stated, pointing over my shoulder at Anderson.

"And we're already set, aren't we?" he smirked, causing the receptionist to laugh nervously and nod, allowing us to continue up the stairs.

I followed my new mentor up about three or four steps until he stopped. I wasn't lucky enough to catch myself before crashing into him. And you know how it is when you bump into people on the stairs…

"That's right," he began, completely ignoring the fact that my face was just…never mind. "There's an elevator."

Thank goodness for that. Those first few steps made my chest wound twinge and sting a little. No excess movement is required to operate an elevator.

Anderson led me across the lobby and pressed the button to call down the car for us. We had to wait a while, and when the customary ding sounded and the doors opened, its passengers exited, looking up at us in a snobbish manner.

Disregarding them, Anderson stepped into the elevator and I followed, making sure to step clearly over the crack in the floor. I wasn't sure why, but I had always done that.

Except for that one time. That time in that enormous building, where my team and I were sent to hunt down a vampire. We all filed into that elevator, and I didn't have the chance to make sure I avoided the mini abyss. I remembered hearing the gun blasts and seeing the chests of my comrades being blown open all around me. I was the only one who survived, yet I was standing there in that hotel elevator, looking exactly as they had.

Instead of breaking down and falling to my knees like anyone else would do after recalling such a traumatic memory, I smiled. It was ironic, knowing that the one who had spared me would soon be begging for my mercy. Or so I hoped.

The third floor button was illuminated, and as soon as I began staring at it, the light went out and I felt the elevator lurch lightly. I heard a second ding and the doors slid open. We stepped onto the hallway carpet and walked down the corridor. I paid close attention to Anderson's movements from the corner of my eye to make sure that I'd know exactly when to stop. I didn't necessarily want to keep going like an idiot.

My tactics were successful, for when I saw his hand rustle through his pocket to get the key, I slowed down, stopping at exactly the right moment as he turned and opened the door. I smiled to myself, proud of being good at reading body language, but my grin was soon replaced by a scowl at the sight of Maxwell sitting comfortably on an overstuffed couch.

"Ah, what a surprise, Miss--"

"Let's make this clear, Maxwell," I interrupted, dismissing the attempted greeting. "I'm not joining the Iscariot. Anderson just agreed to help me get revenge on someone."

"If you insist," he responded nonchalantly.

"I do insist," I snapped back, hoping that the conversation would end and I wouldn't have to come up with some sort of witty remark. It was too early for that.

"Well, who is it you want revenge on?" he asked, still unscathed by my rudeness.

"That's none of your business."

Anderson was standing by the door, awkwardly looking around the room and trying to stay out of the discussion. I turned to face him and caught his eye, wishing that he would create a way to get me away from Maxwell before I got too angry.

"Uhm…why don't I show you where you can stay?" the overgrown Paladin suggested hesitantly. Across from the front door, behind Maxwell and his repulsiveness, were two doors. Anderson made his way over to the left one and opened it, walking inside. I was obviously meant to follow, so I did.

There were two large beds against the back wall and a few suitcases next to the one nearest the doorway. Two identical bureaus sat facing the beds. Everything was fancy and I couldn't picture anyone like Anderson or Maxwell staying in such a place. The furniture was made of dark, ornate wood, and the quilts were lightly colored and floral. Each wall was adorned with delicate wallpaper and had ornamental floor moldings at the bottoms. Even the carpet had some sort of sophisticated air to it, despite its plainness.

"You can sleep in that bed," Anderson said, pointing to the one on the opposite side of the room. "unless you'd prefer this one, that is."

"Oh, that's fine," I replied, strolling over to my newly designated sleeping place and sitting upon it. I tapped my feet on the floor and looked around. There was one wide window between the two beds and it let a lot of light in.

"I can pull the curtains if you need me to," Anderson offered, practically jumping forward, most likely remembering that I was a vampire and all. I looked at him in mock annoyance.

"I was just outside in broad daylight and I'm completely unharmed," I stated, looking over myself and shrugging as my gaze rested on the hole in my chest. "I think I can handle a little sun from the window."

"Right, I should've guessed," he said as he sat across from me. We were suspended in an awkward silence until I cleared my throat.

"So when are you going to start training me?"

"We can start right now, if you'd like."

I nodded my head emphatically and Anderson grinned, standing and leaving the room, with myself at his heels once again.

I reveled in my success-- no more caring, no more hesitating, no more worries, and most importantly of all, no more Zinautha. Everything seemed perfect and back to normal.

Although, Integra didn't seem quite as happy to see me as she used to be, and she really wasn't to begin with. Walter, too, appeared rather melancholy lately. I suppose I was the only one who was positively affected by Zinautha's death.

Each time I awoke, I had a strange feeling that something was wrong. I usually shook off my uneasiness and went on with the day, eager for new assignments. Only two had come up since my independence had been renewed. They were boring cases, only mediocre vampires, not doing anything extraordinarily horrific. It took me all of five minutes to destroy them, returning home with nothing else to do.

I checked in on Walter often, only to be jaded further by his tedious work. He was still very gloomy, no longer the cheerful butler he used to be. As I mentioned earlier, Integra wasn't necessarily fond of my company, and she kicked me out of her office more frequently than before.

For entertainment, I would take the form of the hell hound and mosey around the estate grounds, chasing small animals and rolling in the grass. I knew I must've looked rather more insane than usual to Integra and Walter, but everyone else viewed me as a normal dog, so I didn't care much. Anything to pass the time.

With no enormous human massacres, I was reduced to drinking medical blood all the time. At least I didn't have to share it with anyone, now. There was a large stock of it in the kitchens, and I was sure it would last me a long time, since no one else needed it anymore.

A week had passed since I rid myself of Zinautha, and one morning, whilst sipping my breakfast, that vague tightening in the back of my mind returned.

Anderson had been training me for a week, bringing me out to a sizeable clearing in the nearest woods. Seeing as we were in the city, we had to travel for quite a while before we found forest. So just getting there was half the training.

Actually, despite the exhaustion that the walk brought, Anderson pushed me pretty hard. Luckily, enough, my bullet wound had healed considerably and no longer pained me. He had me doing push-ups and the like, also doing laps around the clearing. A few times, he asked me to take down trees with my sword. Each time I cut one down, he'd move me on to a larger, thicker tree.

On one particular morning, I couldn't stop myself from smiling. I felt so energized, and I thought only of the end product I desired-- an Alucard who has learnt his lesson.

"What's gotten into you?" Anderson asked me, grinning as I tore through the trunk of an enormous tree.

"Nothing," I replied, trying to straighten out my face.

"Alright, well that can be your last tree for the day," he decided, adding to my exhilaration. As effortless as it had become, slaughtering foliage wasn't exactly my idea of fun.

We raced each other out of the woods, but walked casually back to the hotel, slightly out of breath and creating a bit of a spectacle of ourselves.

"You're just jealous because I won," Anderson said as we neared the hotel.

"Oh, yes, totally," I replied sardonically. "All hail the grand Iscariot who outran a girl." Without his noticing, I hopped up the stairs and grabbed the door handle. "I did, however beat you to the door."

He shook his head, smiling, and followed me into the building. The relationship I had with Anderson was an odd one. Despite the bad blood we had had in the past, I was very open towards him and he was okay with that. It was almost as if nothing happened and we had been friendly all along.

On top of working my rear end off, I hadn't had any blood for a while. It was only 7:30 at night, but I went right to bed anyways.

As fatigued as I was, I couldn't fall asleep. I heard voices from outside the room and decided to listen in on them.

"So when are you going to do this revenge thing?" I heard Maxwell's voice ask.

"Whenever she's ready," Anderson's voice responded. "or whenever there's an opportune moment. I can't tell exactly when it will be."

"Alright. Well, I was just wondering because I'd like you to try and take care of the rest of the Hellsing operation, as well."

"I…I don't know if that's possible with just us, but I will definitely see what I can do."

The rest of the Hellsing operation? The only one I wanted injured was Alucard. Neither Integra nor Walter, nor anyone else for that matter, deserved to be punished. Now I really couldn't sleep. I spent the night feverishly thinking of ways to cancel out that part of the plan.