All disclaimers still apply. Hellsing, not mine; this chapter is my work, done without permission.
Yes, it's a wishy-washy ending, a few decades after I actually posted the fic (which could stand alone, actually,) where I couldn't decide which way to go. This would be the more somber ending. . .
..
I sat on the polished wood, cross-legged, examining the thing I'd found hidden away among Alucard's weapons.
The surface under me moved. I glanced down. "About time."
A glove rested on the case's edge, spider-like. Alucard was deciding how to handle this. He finally lifted the coffin lid steadily and placed it crosswise, with me in the center so that I wouldn't fall. My feet dangled into his coffin.
"What in heaven's name is this?" I extended the skull carelessly in one hand.
"Pardon me." He rescued the token possessively.
"If you don't mind. . ."I was feeling as polite as he. I snatched the skull back. "Alucard, are you going to degenerate into a black nailed, black lipped, weepy American vampire on me?" I turned the skull over in my hands. The light caught many thin patches in the dome where the bone had broken away and rehealed.
"It's a reminder." Alucard's eyes were shaded by his glasses. I very nearly pulled them down to look for eyeliner. He took the skull back, cradling it in both hands. I decided to take the more subtle tack.
"I can't decide if it's human or vampire," I pondered. "Those canines could be either. How long have you had it?"
"A year, perhaps." He moved to sitting by me on the edge of the coffin, smiling at me with his typical mockery. Oh, good.
"Don't let Seras see it," I ordered. "You might spread the idea, and then I'll never be able to keep a maid."
"Of course not." His reply sounded mechanical. His gaze was fixed on me. I was almost certain he wasn't wearing mascara. What a relief. He was wondering what I was thinking.
"You take that little trophy seriously, don't you?" I asked before he got curious enough to test his boundaries.
"It's not a trophy, master. It's a reminder not to fail again." He rested his chin on the skull's dome. His expression was blank. I read sorrow in his pose.
"That could be useful," I said sharply. "You're becoming careless, Alucard. I expect perfection of you. It is why you are here."
"Rest assured, master. . . I do not ever want to repeat my mistake." He was watching me with that unreadable look. He stood, stepping out of the coffin, and moved around me to place the odd skull at its head. I stood, echoing his movement. I had never seen this mood before. I moved away, prepared to outwait it. I paused at the door, looking back, but he had already retreated from my curiosity.
..
Yes, it's a wishy-washy ending, a few decades after I actually posted the fic (which could stand alone, actually,) where I couldn't decide which way to go. This would be the more somber ending. . .
..
I sat on the polished wood, cross-legged, examining the thing I'd found hidden away among Alucard's weapons.
The surface under me moved. I glanced down. "About time."
A glove rested on the case's edge, spider-like. Alucard was deciding how to handle this. He finally lifted the coffin lid steadily and placed it crosswise, with me in the center so that I wouldn't fall. My feet dangled into his coffin.
"What in heaven's name is this?" I extended the skull carelessly in one hand.
"Pardon me." He rescued the token possessively.
"If you don't mind. . ."I was feeling as polite as he. I snatched the skull back. "Alucard, are you going to degenerate into a black nailed, black lipped, weepy American vampire on me?" I turned the skull over in my hands. The light caught many thin patches in the dome where the bone had broken away and rehealed.
"It's a reminder." Alucard's eyes were shaded by his glasses. I very nearly pulled them down to look for eyeliner. He took the skull back, cradling it in both hands. I decided to take the more subtle tack.
"I can't decide if it's human or vampire," I pondered. "Those canines could be either. How long have you had it?"
"A year, perhaps." He moved to sitting by me on the edge of the coffin, smiling at me with his typical mockery. Oh, good.
"Don't let Seras see it," I ordered. "You might spread the idea, and then I'll never be able to keep a maid."
"Of course not." His reply sounded mechanical. His gaze was fixed on me. I was almost certain he wasn't wearing mascara. What a relief. He was wondering what I was thinking.
"You take that little trophy seriously, don't you?" I asked before he got curious enough to test his boundaries.
"It's not a trophy, master. It's a reminder not to fail again." He rested his chin on the skull's dome. His expression was blank. I read sorrow in his pose.
"That could be useful," I said sharply. "You're becoming careless, Alucard. I expect perfection of you. It is why you are here."
"Rest assured, master. . . I do not ever want to repeat my mistake." He was watching me with that unreadable look. He stood, stepping out of the coffin, and moved around me to place the odd skull at its head. I stood, echoing his movement. I had never seen this mood before. I moved away, prepared to outwait it. I paused at the door, looking back, but he had already retreated from my curiosity.
..