I was shaking all over. It felt like a sauna, but the thermostat said it was only 55°. The window had been opened but it wasn't helping. No matter what, it felt like I was on fire.
"Kiora."
My eyes darted around the room. There was no one there.
"Kiora."
Again!
"Who are you?" It was barely whisper.
There was no response.
"Who are you?"
Again, no response. It must be my imagination. Getting up, I turned down the thermostat again. Halfway back to the bed, my legs gave way. Landing hard on the floor, it took everything not to let out a cry of pain. Slowly crawling, I reached the bed and heaved myself onto it.
"It's never been this bad." I muttered. "Damn it all."
I picked up the phone in Integra's office. There was a list of places in front of me, and I'd only just started. Sighing, I dialed the first one. No luck, same with the second, third, fourth and fifth.
"Damn it." I said, putting the phone down again.
No one knew anything about the attack on the Tower of London. To make matters worse, I couldn't even get in contact with the Queen. There was nothing else I could do, at least not now. I'd run out of ideas.
There was a knock at the door.
"Come in."
It was Manelin. He was carrying a tray of sandwiches.
"You can't skip meals Kia." He smiled, putting the tray on the desk.
"I'm not hungry."
"Kia, you have to eat."
He touched my shoulder gently.
"I'm sorry, this is just…"
"It's alright."
I picked up one of the sandwiches and took a bite. It was then that I heard my rumbling stomach. A blush crept to my cheeks. He laughed.
"Not hungry?" He smiled.
"Hush."
"Have you always been this stubborn?"
"Yeah, but it's not a bad thing."
"How's it coming?"
"Nobody seems to know how to get them out besides going through the courts."
"And that would take too long."
"Yeah, years. Besides, with the inquiry would be public and the topic of vampires would have to be brought up."
Just then, the phone rang. Surprised, I picked it up.
"Hello?"
"I am looking for Sir Dornez."
"This is she."
"We have gotten word that you are looking for a way to get Sir Hellsing and Walter Dornez out of prison."
"Who is this?"
"We are representatives of Her Majesty the Queen."
"But I couldn't get in contact with anyone all day."
"Her Majesty cannot be known to have released the people who attacked the Tower of London. Do you wish to have them released or not?"
"Yes."
"Then they shall be. We will have a transport take them to the Hellsing Manor tonight."
"Wait, who are-"
There was a click. I looked up at Manelin.
"Who was that?"
"I don't know, but they must be heaven sent."
"Time has been good to you Kia." Integra smiled, hugging me tight.
"The wonders of the Parisian sun."
She stepped back. Then the smile faded from her face. It was time to talk business.
"How did you find out about the attack, it wasn't in the papers."
"Father Anderson came into the European Alliance HQ."
"You've been working for the European Alliance?"
"Yeah, long story."
"Alright. We need men."
"We're recruiting as we speak. Manelin has offered to let us have some men from the European Alliance. They are well trained, I oversaw them myself."
"Tell him that any and all help will be appreciated."
"Will do. The men should be here in the morning. I hope you don't mind, but I'd already accepted his offer."
"You are still presumptive Kia." But I caught a hint of a smile. "It's a good thing, though. The freak problem is getting out of control."
"Is there anything else we need to take care of?"
"I just have one question for you. How did you get us out of those cells?"
"To tell you the truth, I don't know. Well, I've got to go, I promised Dad that I'd spend lunch catching up with him."
"Alright, don't keep Walter waiting."
I sat down across from Dad outside the manor. It was too nice of a day to stay inside. Besides, he'd really outdone himself with the food.
"It's been too long Kia." He smiled.
"I can't believe it's been five years." I laughed, picking up a fork.
"Tell me, has Paris been good to you?"
"Very. I started working for the European Alliance a while ago. I'm in charge of Operations now. It's so much different from Hellsing."
"There is no other like it. Now tell me about that man, Manelin Picard. I've heard he was the leader of the European Alliance. Why is he here with you?"
"Well, we've been dating and he came to help me out. I mean he is a hunter. Don't worry Dad, you'll really like him once you two get to know each other."
"As long as you're happy Kia. It is still going to be hard to lose my baby girl."
"Dad." I laughed.
"How are you really feeling Kia?"
I froze.
"What are you talking about?"
"Have you been sick?"
"Well…"
"Kiora."
I couldn't look in his eyes. There was no way I could tell him. Suddenly, I began to shake.
"Kiora?"
I heard chair scraping against the ground. Two hands took me by my shoulders. Something started welling up in my throat. It made me cough. In my mouth it tasted like blood. My body quickly began to heat up. There was nothing I could do. Everything went black.
"Kiora…" The voice was so familiar.
I blinked, but it was still black all around me.
"Kiora, I'm coming for you."
"Jaeger!" I managed to sit up.
There was no end to the darkness, and it seemed to be getting tighter.
"The time is coming when we will meet again. And this time, you won't win."
I sat bolt upright in my bed. There was movement on both sides, but I took no heed. My body was drenched in sweat and I was panting.
"Kiora, what is it?" It was Dad's voice.
"He's back." I gasped. "Jaeger is back."
Despite the warning, Jaeger stayed hidden for the next six years. Though always cautious, I managed to marry and have a child with Manelin. We had stayed in London, to continue to help Integra with the Hellsing Organization, and so that Dad didn't have to cross the channel every time he wanted to see his grandson.
What puzzled me most was Alucard's behavior. He had started to get more and more anxious, almost to the point of alerting Integra. It seemed that he was always cautious of letting her know, as if it would disrupt something. I could tell though.
"Kia, I'm putting Jasper to bed." Manelin's voice came from inside our apartment.
"Alright, I'll be in shortly." I stayed where I was on the terrace.
I don't get it, why hasn't he shown himself? If he wasn't strong enough to face me six years ago, why did he send that message? Wait a minute, damn it. He was trying to scare me. That sounds just like him. How could I be fooled like that?
"Kia, are you coming?"
"I'll be in soon."
"Kia."
He put his arms around my waist and pulled me close. It felt so good to be close to him.
"You can't keep worrying about Jaeger. He'll show himself when he's ready."
"That's what worries me."
A tickling filled my throat and I began coughing. I could feel the blood on my tongue. He picked me up, bringing me to our bed. Carefully pouring some syrup into a cup, he put it to my lips.
"Don't get worked up. It always gets worse when that happens." He said after I'd stopped coughing.
"It's gotten better."
"Don't push yourself."
"He's coming back Manelin, I can feel it."
"Stop talking. Sleep."
Lying down next to me, he pulled me close. Soon I could hear his rhythmic breathing, and I knew he'd fallen asleep. My mind was still full of thoughts and I watched as the moonset and the sun rose.
A/N: As before, this hasn't been edited yet. I will post the edited version once Jen gets back to me. Until then, I hope everyone enjoyed.