Disclaimer: The ghouls ate it.

Authors note: This chapter was already in progress the last time I updated. It's been written 26 times, and nowhere could I find a way to break it up into two. I hope the effort meets your expectations and if not, please let me know. I haven't titled any chapters in this story but if I did – this would be Aftermath.

Chapter 27

Integra closed her bedroom door and saw that Walter had indeed already laid out her formal black suit, along with a shirt and a red cravat.

*Efficient as always.* she mused as she headed towards the shower. It was going to be a very long day, perhaps even more trying than the night that had just passed.

She stood under the hot water, mentally gearing up for the tasks ahead. She could have designated it to one of Hellsing's many administrative assistants but that went against her grain. She was responsible for all her people and so she wouldn't even consider it. As the heat of the water eased some the ever-present tension in her neck, she felt the mental surge of her bond with Alucard, and realised that he had only just returned to the mansion.

*He probably took the long way home.* she thought, cranking the taps closed, and reaching out for her towel. *Can't say I blame him.*

Finishing up, she got dressed in short order and then went looking for her Hellsing tie pin. It only ever came out for funerals and knighthood ceremonies. It was a cross like all her other pins, except this one had the Hellsing coat of arms in the center. Fixing it in place, she glanced at the mirror to make sure that nothing was out of place and made her way downstairs. The wan light of dawn crept through the windows as she made her way back to her office. Unsurprisingly, Alucard was waiting for her, lounging in his customary windowsill, with his head back and his eyes closed.

Since he had not yet reported back to her, the power release hadn't been rescinded and again she was reminded of the day that she first met him, deep in the dungeons of the mansion. She took a moment to study him, this time as an adult and not a furious child. She had to admit, he was an impressive sight, even in repose.

"I can feel you looking." he said, not bothering to open his eyes.

She deigned not to answer and instead took her seat at the desk that was brimming with reports and files. Taking a moment to find her cigars, she began looking for her lighter that had been hidden under the paperwork, however – it became unnecessary as the tip of the cigar flared into life. She turned and looked at her servant, with narrowed eyes.

"Showing off?"

"It seemed helpful."

She could sense his reluctance to say the words that would set the control art system back into place, and briefly she felt a pang of sympathy. And then she remembered why it had been created in the first place, he was simply too powerful to turn loose without some sort of fail-safe. Unhappy that his loyalty to her was always under question, she didn't make him come to her and instead asked quietly:

"Please report situation of targets?"

Slightly taken aback by the sympathy that he had felt, Alucard still hesitated before answering.

"Targets silenced, power release complete."

With these words, he could feel his powers draining away, coupled with the familiar sting from the seals on the backs of his hands. It took only moments and then he was once more the red coated figure that most of Hellsing was used to. He tried to hide his disappointment but Integra still felt it, in fact she could almost taste the bitterness.

He uncoiled himself and came to stand next to the desk. Briefly he filled her in on the details of the mad creature and it's brood. She said nothing, just watched him through a smoky haze. Eventually she said:

"You've done well. Dawn is coming and I don't want to keep you any longer. That will be all."

He gave a short nod and walked out of the room. Her brusqueness wasn't unexpected, she was always a little touchy when they had lost men. Shaking his head over the complexity of human emotions, he made his way down to his room, where he could sit in his chair and brood, pretending that there were no complexities in vampiric emotions.

From the other end of the hallway, Walter watched Alucard leave Integra's office and noted that he had reverted to his original form. Entering the office, he found that she had already began sifting through the paperwork that had arrived. She looked up at the sound of his footsteps and noted gratefully that he had come armed with a full pot of tea.

"Thank you Walter."

She sipped tea and tried to read reports but her glasses fogged up. With a muttered curse, she leaned back and looked at Walter who was once again sitting opposite her.

"Can you summarize for me?

"Of course, Sir Integra."

He then went on the list the number of losses, casualties and so forth. She was surprised when she realised that the number of wounded outnumbered their losses. She had been sure it was going to be the other way around, and said as much to Walter.

"Yes. It seems that the lightly wounded ceased combat and began pulling out the incapacitated soldiers instead. Given the situation, it was a clever thing to do – removing hindrances to combat allowed the remaining men to control the situation and gain victory."

"However," He continued, "It has left over fully half of our forces out of commission for combat."

She gave a wry smile and said:

"I'd rather have full wards than full graves."

Then she added softly:

"Although one loss still feels like one too many."

They sat in silence for a moment and then she stood up and said:

"Shall we get going then?"

He escorted her out the building, into the car and started the drive that would take to her to many houses where she would have to tell women that they were widows and children that their daddy wasn't coming home.

Jane was leaning against a wall, one knee bent with the foot braced behind her. She was out of the way of the returning troops, but still in a position to see whenever a new vehicle arrived. Josh was not back yet and her tension was rising. Something was unsettled deep inside her and she wouldn't be satisfied until she could see her brother in front of her, whole and unharmed. Another troop lorry arrived and she narrowed her eyes as the men started to climb out the back. As soon as she saw Seras' rifle being heaved out, she made her way through the small crowd towards them. As she did so, Seras climbed down, followed by Josh. Jane's heart stuttered and her mouth went dry as she got a look at her brother's face. She'd never seen him so pale, nor seen his eyes so wounded. Feeling as though her blood had turned to ice in her veins, she went up to him.

Josh saw his sister coming, and from the look on her face – he knew that he probably looked the same. He didn't know how he was going to tell her what had happened, what he had done. He tried to form a coherent sentence but somehow the words were just not coming, and his tongue felt like it was glued to the roof of his mouth. He shoved his hand into his pocket and felt for the brass casing that he had retrieved – it was long since cold but it felt like it was burning in his fingers.

Seras had hoped Jane would be there, as she didn't know what to do for her friend. Despite him seeking out her hand, he had refused to say a word during the drive back, ignoring her when she had tried to speak to him. She knew that they were friends, since they'd met in the workshop they had found many reasons to seek each other out, but she also knew that sometimes only family would do. She took a small step backwards as Jane caught up to them, and watched the twins.

Josh felt his sisters hands catch hold of his face and he absently noticed that they were warm. They insistently drew his head downwards and eventually he was forced to meet his sisters eyes. Filled with concern, her gaze struck him to the core and then his vision blurred as tears began to form.

Jane forced her brother to look at her and was terrified by the blank look that she found. His normally laughing brown eyes were flat and dull. And then they began to glisten with tears. She forced herself to try and keep a calm tone as she asked:

"Josh, what happened? What's wrong?"

He stared helplessly at her and then did the only thing he could think of. He extended his hand between them and looked down at his open palm. Without letting go of his face, Jane followed his eyes downwards and saw his open hand. It was trembling, causing the light to glint off the red painted rifle casing.

Seras knew that the casing would tell Jane part of what had happened. She braced herself for the explosion of the red-heads formidable temper, and was instead astonished by Jane's actions. Her face took on a serene expression as she reached down and gently closed his hand around the casing. Keeping that hand on his, she reached the other around to cup the back of Josh's neck, rose up on her tiptoes and brought his forehead down to rest on hers and said quietly:

"Shh, it's okay. Come, we're going home."

Seras watched them standing there for what seemed like ages, head to head and holding the casing between them. She was startled when Jane let go of her brother and turned to her with a faint smile.

"Thank you for staying with him. Would you mind staying a little longer while I find a car to take us home? I know dawn's nearly here, but I don't want him to be alone."

Seras nodded mutely, shaken by what she had just seen. Jane quickly vanished into the milling throng, leaving her standing next to Josh.

"Josh?" she said quietly.

He remained silent, but as before, he sought her hand and they stood there – hand in hand while people came and went, the sky beginning to lighten in the distance.

Dr Trevelyan shoved the dog-tags into his pocket and then slowly drew the zip closed on the body bag, shutting away another young face. He sighed heavily and motioned to the acting porters.

"To the morgue please, gentlemen."

He didn't bother to watch them, instead he turned and walked out of the surgery, sighing heavily as he went. His pocket jingled with every step and he walked faster, as if he could outpace the sound. Eventually he came to a stop at the back of the building, where he found relative privacy in the darkness. Sinking down he sat against the wall, knees bent and elbows resting on his thighs. He put his hands up and rubbed at his tired eyes. His hands moved to his temples and he was just starting to try and ease his headache when footsteps sounded on the gravel next to him. Dropping his hands and opening his eyes, he looked up to find Major Ferguson standing in front of him.

"I believe we lost Jacobs?"

"I'm afraid so. We were just too late."

He was expecting the impassive Hellsing commander to leave, having duties elsewhere, but instead Ferguson took up much the same position as himself. A moment later, a match flared into life and a cigarette glowed brightly as he inhaled deeply. Ferguson held out the packet questioningly, and was not surprised when the doctor took one and lit up. They had faced the aftermath of many a battle together and it had become something a ritual for them to have a single cigarette, almost in memory of those that had been lost. Trevelyan reached into his pocket and pulled out a tangle of dog tags. The chains had wound together as he had put one on top of the next, as he had gone from patient to patient.

He held it out to Ferguson, saying:

"I'm sorry, they're all twisted up."

"They always are." was the reply, laced with irony.

The two of them sat smoking, silent and exhausted. The light of dawn crept over the grounds around them, but they remained in shadow, the building behind them blocking out the light of the rising sun.

After watching the Smiths leave, Seras became acutely aware that she was standing about in nearly broad daylight. With nothing left to do, she shouldered her rifle and hurriedly made her way into the mansion and down to the basement. Upon entering her room, she saw that Walter had already set out her meal – she could never decide to call it breakfast or supper. Stowing her gear, she sat on the chair and gratefully dragged off her boots, absently throwing them towards the nearest corner.

*Couldn't care less right now.* she thought as she reached for the blood pack.

When she had finished, she sat at the table, deep in thought. She had received several emotional moments during the past night – full scale urban combat, feeling the destruction of her own kind and watching her friend have to make an impossible decision. But above all of these, she was trying to process seeing her master in a way that she couldn't have ever imagined. It had hammered home the vast gulf of power between them, but it had also given her an idea of what she could become. It was confusing and somewhat frightening. She reached out for her master as she knew that he was already back at the mansion, but somehow he seemed muffled across their bond, as if he was shutting her out. Briefly she toyed with the idea of going down to knock on her door and then decided that perhaps that was not the best of ideas. She tried to reach him again, to let him know that she was there and was rewarded with the mental response of:

*Go to bed!*

Even though the response had been curt, she was slightly reassured that he was at least aware of her being there. She knew that she was most likely in for a scolding later, something along the lines of trying to stay human – but right now she didn't care. Hopping through the shower, she threw herself into her bed and clicked the switch to close it. As sleep claimed her, all she could see was her master striding through the night, his long hair twisting in the wind.

Alucard was both amused and irritated by his fledgling's persistence and eventually responded just to get her out of his head. He was sat cross-ways in his chair, with his long legs dangling over one side while he braced himself on the other side. He was feeling oddly introspective and he remembered when he had no bonds, no mental links, no one in his head making demands on his time or his feelings. Trying to decide if he had been better off then or not led him to think about his former masters – they had not been kind. This in turn led him to think about his current master. He had not lied when he told her that of all the Hellsing's he had served, she was the only one that he respected. He was aware of the salacious gossip regarding his master, his fledgling and himself, and it was only the ban on killing people that kept them alive.

Deep down Alucard knew that he would always see Integra as that furious child that faced him down at their first meeting. Committed to her duty – body and soul, he had watched her grow up and become someone that he could admire – someone he could bow his head to and not feel like he was selling his soul all over again. He frowned, uncomfortable with the bend that his mental meanderings had taken him on, and yet he continued to lounge in his throne, brooding.

Jane hustled her brother's six foot frame through the door, while carrying his gear and trying to find the light switch all at the same time. Eventually she clicked on the hall light and leaned the rifle case up in a corner.

"Come on, it's the shower for you." she said briskly, herding him off towards the bathroom. He followed along, letting his sister push him about as if he were nothing but a child that had had a bad day. She shoved him through the door with a towel and said:

"Pop your clothes out and I'll get them into the washer straight away."

He nodded slowly, closing the door behind him. He heard her slide down the wall and end with a soft thump and gathered she was sitting in the hall, waiting for his fatigues. He undressed with numb fingers, in fact – all of him felt numb. He couldn't really feel anything – inside or out. He cracked the door and pushed out his uniform with his foot and then stepped into the shower cubicle. Turning on the water, he didn't feel the cold water needling his skin. But as he stood there, head bowed under the spray he could it it gradually warming up, sluicing away the dust, his sweat – his sins.

Jane waited for the water to start and then headed for the kitchen. She fumbled through the uniforms pockets, shoving the casing into her own without looking at it. Then she shoved the bundle into the washing machine and set it going. Rummaging through the pantry, she decided that some soup would be best and soon had it heating on the stove. By the time she had carried the bowls out the sitting room, Josh was already on the sofa, rubbing at his hair with a towel.

She handed him his portion, her expression indicating that he'd better take it or else. Being soup, it didn't take them long to finish and soon they were sitting there on the sofa, side by side in silence. Jane waited patiently, and eventually Josh started to tell her what had happened at the hospital. As he spoke, he leaned closer to his sister.

"He said to tell y,y, you that he was s,s,sorry." he managed to choke out before the weight of the night finally came down on him, and his lay down on the sofa, hid his face in his sisters lap and wept like a broken-hearted child.

Dusk was casting its long shadows by the time Walter turned into the mansions driveway. Parking the car, he opened the door for Integra and then followed her towards the stairway into the building proper. The visits to the families were mercifully over, but Integra still had more to do. There were calls to make to families further afield. She turned to Walter and said:

"We can argue about it another time, but I really couldn't face supper tonight."

He raised and eyebrow and then nodded in understanding.

"Will there be anything else for the evening?"

"No thank you. I'll see you in the morning – go get some sleep."

She turned away to continue down the hallway when his hand landed on her shoulder. He squeezed gently, this being the closest that he would get to expressing sympathy. She reached up and patted it and then walked away, leaving Walter standing alone.

He watched her walk away and sighed heavily. With no more tasks to hand, he headed to his suite of rooms where he sat at his desk and stared out the window, watching the evening swallow up the day. It had been over 24 hours since he had slept, but he knew that sleep would remain elusive for a while. He took off his monocle and rubbed his hands over his face, for once feeling his age.

A soft tap at the door startled him slightly and he called:

"Yes?"

"It's me Walter, may I come in?"

He crossed the room and opened the door to find Seras there, looking embarrassed.

"How can I help you Miss Victoria?"

She squirmed under his unwavering gaze and for a moment, looked as if she was going to bolt off. Then she gave a lop-sided smile and held up a bottle of brandy.

"I was wondering if you'd join me in a drink?"

Seras almost giggled at the look on Walter's face when she offered the bottle and then hurriedly explained:

"We did it when I was in the force, you have a drink for those that can't."

He smiled gently, understanding the custom, but a little confused as to why she was at his door.

"Shouldn't you be with the other men that were there?"

Hot colour infused her cheeks and she said softly:

"I still make some of them uncomfortable, and master told me that you were not with Sir Integra. It didn't seem right that you were here alone – you went through as much of it as we did. So...ummm"

He chuckled and stood aside, gesturing for her to come in.

"Let's continue that tradition shall we then, Miss Victoria?"

She entered the suite and said as she passed him:

"Walter, we're about to drink a bottle of brandy together, I really think it's time you called me Seras."

Full dark was pressing at the windows by the time Integra was finished making the calls. Each time she had dialed a number, her throat filled with a sticky feeling of dread as she waited for someone to answer so that she could destroy their lives as they knew them. She leaned back in her chair and lit a cigar, but she only took two draws before crushing it out. Glancing over at the door to make sure that it was latched, she took off her glasses, folded her arms on the desk and laid down her head. It wasn't long before the tears came, followed by harsh and ugly sobs. She didn't see Alucard materialize behind her, but she knew that he had arrived. She watched through a blur as he took the phone off the hook and stood next to her. Neither of them said anything, not did he touch her. He merely stood sentry as she finally gave release to her feelings, knowing that she wouldn't be disturbed.

Joshua rose out of sleep to find himself on the sofa, covered with a blanket. He had obviously fallen asleep and being unable to move him, Jane had left him there. It was dark and with a quick glance at his watch, he ascertained that it was late. Sitting up, he rubbed at his puffy eyes and clicked on a nearby lamp. He didn't see his sister, nor could he hear her moving around. He got up, a warning bell going off in his head. A quick glance into her room showed that she wasn't in bed, and a perusal of the hallway showed that her coat and keys were still there, which meant she was in the flat somewhere. Then he saw that his rifle case was open and the camera was missing. His pulse skipped as he realised what she was going to see if she watched the footage. He started hurriedly looking into rooms and finally made his way down to the basement. She was sitting on the floor, in the dark, with her laptop in front of her.

Jane decided to watch the camera footage in the basement, where no one would hear her if she lost control. She accessed the memory card and watched the horror from her brother's point of view. He had only caught a few moments of Alucard's other form, but she froze the screen and studied the image closely. Her fingers itched to trace the outline of his leather-clad form but she resisted the urge.

* That's explains that then. * she thought to herself.

She restarted the footage and watched the ground floors windows burst into a thousand glittering shards. She watched as he had tracked and killed ghouls that had been driven into the kill-box by the others and then she watched as he killed their friend. And that was where Josh found her, looping the last killing over and over, while she absently rolled the casing in her fingers.

Jane could feel her anger rising and fought for control, knowing that her rage could drive her to do terrible things. She stood, eyes still glued to the screen, hoping the action would mitigate her temper – but it was a battle that she knew she would lose. Just as she was about to give in and drive her fist into the wall, her arm was caught from behind in the crook of Josh's arm.

"You need that hand." he said mildly.

Without hesitation, she drove her left hand at the wall, only for it to meet the same fate.

"You need that one too."

Struggling in her brother's arm lock, she growled out a profanity and said:

"Let me go."

"I won't do that."

"I'll hurt you."

"You won't."

She wrenched at his hold, frustration and fury consuming her rational thoughts. But Josh was well versed in handling his sister's way of expressing herself. With a practiced sweep of his foot, he knocked her off balance and sat down heavily, taking her with him. He wrapped his arms around her, preventing her from breaking loose, and watched her hands flail uselessly in front of her. He held on tight, ensuring that she couldn't get her feet under her and whispered into her working ear.

"Let it go."

An inarticulate sound of fury was the reply and he repeated himself.

"Let go Jane, it's okay, let go."

She renewed her struggles but couldn't break free – this frustration coupled with her rage finally drove her over the edge and a scream tore itself from her chest, followed by another and then another. She tasted blood in the back of her throat but couldn't stop screaming – although her eyes remained dry.

Joshua held his sister as she screamed out her rage and grief, holding on as tight as he could.

For as long a he could remember this was how they worked – he would cry, she would scream. And together they would find comfort and solace.