Hellsing: Witch Hunter 1616
Sapphirewyren
Chapter 5: We're Off to See the King
Disclaimer: I do not own Hellsing
King Albrecht the Sixth watched as the three women entered the throne room and approached the throne. He had been told about the three hunters and was surprised at how young they were, the youngest being 19. The king for a minute thought it would be better if they came back when they were a bit older, but the aura of determination that rolled off them and the fact that witches and other creatures ran rampant through England changed his mind. A murmur went through the crowd in the throne room, mostly surprised that the new King's Hunters were three women-girls. No one besides the King and Queen had known their identities. One man, a tall willowy fellow with a salt n' pepper mustache and goatee, and a bad case of male pattern baldness stepped forward; "Your Majesty, this is quite preposterous these…girls cannot be your Hunters! I am sure there are some eligible men, who would be a better fit!" Albrecht noticed that two of the three women stiffened at this comment and glared at him, things were not starting well.
If there was one thing that Integra hated, it was a person with a big mouth, especially when that person was a coward. This shameless pissant had the nerve to say such as idiotic nonsense. Next to her, Integra could see Sam and Seras react to the comment, if they knew that this moron was George Whitehall, patriarch of the Whitehall family and culprit of the Hunter family massacres, they would have torn him to shreds. He had been at her knighting ceremony and then he had said nothing, wisely. Today he must not have been feeling too smart. "Let's have some fun then," Integra said to herself. Unclasping the black sword sheath, walking up to Whitehall, held it out to him and drawled; "Would you like to wield this blade, Lord Whitehall? Or perhaps one of your sons may be eligible?" Integra could feel Sam and Seras' glare intensify as she identified their families' killer. Lord Whitehall's hand twitched as if it wanted to grab the hilt, but he didn't move. For while the Harkonnen and Byakko gave unworthy wielders quite a nasty shock, Alucard tended to be much crueler, by sucking them dry of their blood. All eyes were on Integra and Lord Whitehall knew he had lost the round and muttered; "I'm sorry, Lady Hellsing, I…"
"It's Sir, not Lady, use my proper title, if you wish for me to continue using yours, George." Returning her sword to its on her sword belt, the Huntress walked away before the astounded Lord could say anything. King Albrecht rose from his throne; "Does anyone else have any objections?" There were none. "Sir Integra Hellsing, Samielle McClaren, Seras Victoria, wielders of the three demon blades, do you swear to protect the throne, the Church and the people of England from any and all Satanic forces?"
"We do swear!"
"I hereby declare you to be the King's Hunter, England's protectors. May creatures of all kinds fear your names and your blades!"
"Amen!"
The king shook the hands of the three newly appointed huntresses and said; "Who's hungry? I could use a bite to eat." Sam perked up at this; "I agree, someone wouldn't let us eat. Integra rolled her eyes, it wasn't her fault if some people didn't eat breakfast. A couple of hours later, the three Hunters were on their way to the Hellsing Estate. For a couple of miles, no one said anything, each woman absorbed in her thoughts. The luncheon with the King, nobles were also invited, one of those families being the Whitehalls, so while Integra conversed politely with the King and his wife Gwendolyn, the other two huntresses sent nasty glares to Lord Whitehall and his sons. After the meal, Sam and Seras headed straight towards Whitehall, only to be stopped by Integra. To see their 'prey' escape because of one of their own, pissed them off royally and on the ride to their new home, they were now aiming those glares at Integra.
"It would seem that you made two more enemies, master" laughed Alucard.
Integra shrugged; "I wasn't looking to make any friends."
"You should have let us deal with those scumbags," said Seras.
"That's not your job," said Integra blandly.
"That rat bastard killed our families!"
"And you know this, how? What evidence do you have?"
"I KNOW he's behind our families' massacres!"
"For the daughter of a police officer, you don't make a compelling case."
"I don't have to. George Whitehall is guilty and you know it. Why'd you offer him to try and wield your sword?"
"Because he has a big mouth."
"He killed your father or did you forget that?"
"And how exactly would you know that? Were you there?"
"Why are you defending him!?"
This loud outburst startled Kitten and she let Seras know. The young blond patted the mare's neck apologetically and said; "I'm sorry Kitten, it's just this…. "Sir" is being a bitch!"
Integra chuckled; "I told you to call me Sir Hellsing." Seras glared at her but said nothing.
"You like to push buttons, don't ya?" asked Seras.
"I have no idea what you are talking about."
"Out of the three of us, she's still trying to cope with what happened to her family and you're making light of the situation."
"I'm not making light of anything. I have come to terms with my father's death years ago."
"Yet you don't seem to want to know who."
"Of course, I would like to know who, I already know why however I am not going to let petty revenge distract me from my duty to my country."
"Cute excuse."
"Fine, when you and your little friend start your idiotic plot to wipe out the Whitehalls, don't tell me, that way I can have deniability. So, while your ass swings from the nearest tree, I can keep mine covered."
"Nice to know, you'd sell us down the river."
Integra rolled her eyes, the pair of idiots obviously didn't know how things worked. You didn't just go around pointing fingers at people for crimes, even if they DID do it. You need to have some serious proof or you could be the one in trouble. Nobles did not forgive such slights easily. Blaming someone, especially a noble person of a murder could ruin their reputation and if they ended up being innocent in the end, they were already ruined and they couldn't come back from that. How could they not see this? Those two would end up ruining the King's Hunters' reputation before they even started.
Soon they reached the Hellsing Estate. Guards in red and black armor opened the black steel mechanized gates and they rode up to the front doors, where several stable hands were waiting to take their horses to the stables. Of course, the black stallion had to start acting up again until Integra gave him a good-natured slap on the rump and said; "Behave yourself, Baskerville, you're home now."
The home was a 5000-acre plot of land outside of London. It contained a large pasture for the horse to graze filled with many large oak trees and a brook running through it. There was a moor with a copse of trees of various kinds. The manor itself was a large stone 4-story structure in the shape of a three-sided square. Large ornate glass windows covered its surface and there were at least three chimneys on the roof. The interior was a polished wood wonderland, with the floors, ceilings, stairs, railings, furniture, and doors carved from several types of wood such as oak, maple, chestnut, beech, and many others. The other structures on the expansive property had a similar constructional build as the manor. The other buildings consisted of a large stable, barracks for the guards, firing range, several sheds, a hanger for the six airships, a two-story house for the stable hands, a carriage house that retained ten carriages and stone armory. From the metal, black gate to the front doors, there was a paved cobblestone walkway and a fountain that spouted crystal clear water.
As pissed as they were with Integra, Sam and Seras couldn't help but gawk at the splendor of the estate and the magnificence of the manor. The front doors opened and out stepped two men. The first one was a man in his late fifties. He wore his graying hair in a tight ponytail and a monocle on his right eye. The second and younger man was in his mid-forties and wore his salt 'n' pepper hair in a medium cropped style. The older man spoke first: "Welcome to Hellsing Estate. I am Walter C. Dornez, head butler to the Hellsing family." The younger man stepped forward; "I am Philip Dalton, I will be seeing to whatever you need. If you need anything at all, please feel free to ask, I am at your disposal."
Sam grinned at Seras, their butler, how cool was that? As Philip led the two women to their rooms, he introduced them to any staff members they came across the way. Sam and Seras had rooms that were next to each other. Their belongings had been bought ahead of them. "When you have finished settling in, I shall escort you to Sir Hellsing's office." Their rooms were made up of a cozy sitting room, a bathroom of tan marble, and a large bedroom with a queen-size bed, a large mahogany dresser, a writing desk, a closet, and a leather chair near the window. The bathroom had a big brown marble washbasin, a tub, and a glass shower stall. Sam turned on one of the faucets, running water! Figures someone this wealthy would utilize such a rare technology, there was even hot water. There was also a rack with soaps, washcloths, and towels. Hanging on the back of the door was a large fluffy white bathrobe. This was life! Did Hunters in the past life live like this? Seras went into Sam's room and plopped down on her bed; "Your bed is just as plushy as mine! This place is great!"
"Even if it belongs to one hot, but bitchy ass bitch we can't stand?"
Seras frowned; "Oh yeah, I forgot about that…"
"So, what now?"
"It's not like we can leave, we don't have anywhere to go. I was wondering why we can't we live at the palace…."
"We're the King's Hunters, we are probably going to attract freaks and idiots, no sense in putting His Majesty in danger."
"And we have no money, so staying at an inn or hotel is out."
"Yeah, what the hell gives!? She got money and we don't! I'm gonna go and fix that right now! Yo butler!"
They walked out the room, to find Philip standing outside; "Are you ready to see Sir Hellsing now?"
"Damn right, we are!"
"Sam, be nice…"
Meanwhile, in Integra's office, the newly appointed Hunter and Walter were deep in conversation; "Pity that they are the last of the Victoria and McClaren lines, I'm inclined to agree somewhat with that pompous fop, when he said that there should be someone more eligible to be Hunters."
"The swords would not have chosen them if they were not worthy," said Walter mildly.
"They are too obsessed with revenge. They tried to kill Lord Whitehall today."
"Well, he would have been most deserving of it" purred Alucard. "Perhaps you should kill him, after all, he did have your father poisoned."
Integra sighed; "I did not become a Hunter for revenge. It's a waste of time and it won't bring him back. If anything, I'd be just as bad as that moron and I have no wish to lower the Hellsing name to that level. If they want to drag their families' names through the filth for a petty thing such as revenge, then they can do it alone." Walter nodded, while Alucard cackled; "But what if the Whitehalls never get justice for what they did?"
"So be it then, but they will never wield the three blades either. Let them burn in Hell knowing that."
"Well said master, as usual."
The office door opened and Philip, Seras, and Sam walked in. Sam perched on the edge of the desk; "We need to talk finances." Walter cleared his throat: "While you are staying here, there are certain rules that must be followed at all times."
"We know, we know, no raiding Sir Integra's panty drawers" snorted Sam.
Walter glared at her, while Integra said; "Joke's on you, I don't wear panties, because of the size of the stick up my ass. Now shut up and let Walter finish or you will find yourself chained in the stable."
Sam pouted as Walter went through the do's and don't's of the manor ending with "You essentially have free range of the house, however, there are several places you are NEVER to go, first is Sir Hellsing's private chambers, the second is this office unless you are summoned by Sir Hellsing and the third is the basement. You must follow this rule at all times."
"Why?" asked Seras "What's down there?"
Integra lit a thin cigar, blew a stream a smoke before saying; "A couple of monsters and about four dead bodies, nothing much."
"You're joking, right?" asked Sam.
"No, I'm not. Don't worry the bodies are about ten years old now, the monsters are more recent."
Seras hoped that Integra was joking or at least had a dark sense of humor and she turned pleading eyes to Walter, but the expression on his face said nothing to confirm or deny what the Hellsing heiress had just said. The butler left the office for a few moments, then returned with two pouches and two small metal thin slabs that had small rights cut into the sides of them. Handing one of each item to Sam and Seras. "That card is your bank card, present it to a bank teller to deposit or withdraw money. The purses contain half of your stipend from His Majesty, the other half is in the bank."
"I would have preferred the other half to be in my account as rent payment…."
"Sir Hellsing, we've discussed this."
"You're gone soft, Walter."
Sam and Seras didn't have a word of this exchange as they were astounded by the number of gold coins in one place.
"I can go shopping!" exclaimed Seras "I saw this really pretty dress in a store window!"
"I saw a knife set!"
Integra rolled her eyes, she had forgotten these two knew next to nothing about money, so budgeting and saving were not in their vocabularies. "If you spend it all, you don't get…."
"You said the other half is in our accounts?" asked Seras.
"If you spend all of your money you are not getting any more for the month" stated Walter.
"Do try to spend your money wisely, but you made it a habit of not listening to me because what the hell do I know?" sighed Integra.
As Seras was counting her coins, they were snatched out of her hand and the culprit ran out the door laughing.
"Hey, give that back!" cried Seras.
"Who was that?" asked Sam.
"Schrodinger, my son" sighed Integra.
Chapter End
Author's Note And the jaws drop… at least Sam and Seras' anyway. Who knew that Integra had a son? How? Oh, we know how babies are made….so not that 'how'. Will Sam and Seras be able to get their done or will revenge be there downfall? And when will we see some witch killing? All this will come soon, patience readers, patience.