A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing! After this I'm going to portray the Round Table Conference partakers in not a very nice way, so if you think they're all saints, I'm so very sorry.

ALPHA

4.

Arthur Hellsing sat on a chair, looking at a very badly wounded Walter in a bed next to him. The doctor had treated him, and there was nothing else to be done, except to wait. In a few hours a Round Table Conference was about to be held, and how Sir Hellsing wished Walter would come to himself before it. The Conference should be nothing unusual, with debates and disputes, but since they'd just got rid of a powerful enemy, nothing very nasty could come up.

He had a bad feeling, somehow. He hoped that was not the sign that Walter would lose in this battle of life and death. He was anxious to have him back, the subordinate that was almost as dear as his own son. Walter was good, even very good. Sir Hellsing had no idea how he could have been hurt so badly. There was none left alive, except him and Alucard, but the soldiers shouldn't have been defeated like that. He'd even agreed to join forces with a special unit Sir Duncan vouched for.

"Alucard."

Alucard materialized at the other end of the room, looking unenthusiastic. But it was nothing new to Arthur Hellsing.

"What happened?"

"The enemy troops, all human, closed in on us and most of the soldiers under Duncan's command were seized by panic. They tried to run away instead of fighting back, those cowards. That got them killed in no time. Walter was left with our soldiers, but he soon was alone." His monotone speech changed; Alucard spoke with a certain pride in his voice as he continued, "I disobeyed your direct order not to attack humans under any circumstances, but it was too late."

"I see." Arthur's voice was weary, his head bowed. He got the hint Alucard offered him; his order not to attack humans was a joke. He, the other knights, they all wished humans could protect humans from the undead by themselves. Damn their foolish idealism! "Damn my foolish idealism..." he muttered to himself. He decided not to listen to the beautiful suggestions of his fellow knights so much anymore. Why hadn't he seen through them before this? Humans, including the knights, were never fearless. That was exactly the reason why Alucard continued to be useful to the Hellsing institute. The other knights despised the idea of using a vampire to protect England, but they allowed Alucard to face his fellow species anyway because they were afraid of fighting against vampires. This was decided not because of practical reason, not because of simple math, but because they were afraid. Afraid!

If only he'd come sooner to this conclusion...

Alucard stood still, arms crossed in front of his chest. He wasn't exactly following Arthur Hellsing's thoughts with full intention but sensing what went on in his master's mind had been something so natural as liking blood. He'd given up trying to understand humans a long time ago, and as more time passed the more convinced he was that he'd never understand them.

Arthur Hellsing was a remarkable man, possessing a wonderful balance of strength and a gentle heart. But being equipped with his faculty of mind-reading, Alucard knew exactly what conflicts his master – and all his other masters, actually – took upon himself for the sake of others. It almost seemed they were born to torture themselves. His duty was to protect them, but he couldn't protect them from themselves.

Being a vampire was much more practical. He decided by himself what he wanted and was going to do, and most of the times his human master's orders were human enough, meaning it would not endanger him, except that he might be bored to death. One could take saving Walter yesterday for example. He was fond of Walter. The fellow was a fine fighter and did not discriminate others based on whether one had been dead before. But he wouldn't deny that killing the enemy was a lot of fun. Not that they'd put up much of a fight, but he could live with that.

As a comparison, Arthur Hellsing was now torn apart between encouraging Alucard to act according to the worth of human's life or discouraging him from violating his master's order. Truth to be told, Alucard did not care. He would still do the same no matter what his master had to say about it. He was the servant, Hellsing the master, but he had more freedom than his sovereign.

- - -

"Walter."

"Alucard," Walter greeted him, pleased at his appearance in Integra's office. "It's been a long time."

Alucard grinned. "You're still alive."

"I kept myself out of trouble while you were not around."

He nodded approvingly, and then looked at a picture of Integra's father. "The generation has moved along to a promising successor, I learned."

Walter eyed him with interest. He had not the slightest doubt regarding Integra, but he had never heard Alucard speak so highly of anyone at all, not even Arthur Hellsing, who was an excellent master by all standards, excepting a few things. "I'm glad you have so much confidence in miss Hellsing."

Alucard turned to him and grinned in a certain way that intrigued Walter, then left. The elderly butler wrinkled his forehead with a frown, trying to remember when he'd last seen that particular grin, as Integra walked inside the office.

"Is something wrong, Walter?"

"Ah, miss Hellsing," Walter welcomed her heartily. "Nothing is wrong. I was just tempted to make a journey into the past after meeting Alucard."

Integra walked past him and sat on his father's – her – chair.

"Do you know why he was imprisoned?"

"It was the order of the Round Table Conference, I believe. And it was not imprisonment either, but a death sentence. Unfortunately I was in a very bad state of health at that time, so I only knew what was told to me later. In the reports during my absence there was one particular report of a vampire attacking the Hellsing house. I have a feeling that Alucard was meant by this report, although there is no other clue available."

"Why is the whole thing so obscure? Why has father been this concealing!" she complained. Alucard's words came to her mind. "Everyone has to make their own distorted version of the truth." It seemed she could hardly get any facts to begin with. She weighed the matter in her mind again, and asked Walter, "Why did the Round Table Conference issue an order to kill Alucard?"

- - -

tbc