15

Seras rested her chin in her hand and watched Walter pull pickled vegetables off his chopsticks.

"It's certainly been a while since I've had authentic Japanese food," he said between mouthfuls.

They had a lot of time to themselves while Sir Integra was off on her treasure hunt, so they decided on an early dinner as soon as Seras got up. Not that she could eat anything the restaurant served. She had to make do with only a simple glass of water and some good conversation.

"When were you last here?" she asked.

"Nine years ago," Walter began. "It was soon after Sir Integra took control of the Hellsing Organization. I came to meet with two of Solomon's top operatives. O dear, I can't even remember their names anymore. We had been at odds with Solomon for several months and we decided to hold the meeting in a neutral location. We chose Japan because of its..."

Walter's voice was muffled by an onigiri but Seras had already lost the thread anyway. She watched the crowds of pedestrians pass the open windows of the restaurant in the darkening evening. Tokyo seemed like such a lively place. She wished that her Master Alucard was there to share it. At that moment a tall figure in the throng caught her eye. Paladin Anderson towered over the residents of Tokyo like a skyscraper. Seras opened her mouth to scream but Walter's hand suddenly clamped down over her face.

"Please stay calm," he hissed in her ear. "We don't want him to notice us, do we?"

Seras exhaled slowly and Walter released her.

"What are we going to do?" she asked wildly.

"We will warn Sir Integra," Walter replied. "It cannot be a coincidence that he's here at the same time we are. His visit must have something to do with us."

"Do you think he's after the demon swords too?"

"His intentions are impossible to know right now. All we can do is speculate. But I would say the swords are a good guess."

Walter pulled his cell phone from his pocket and dialed.

16

Robin watched Integra's mood darken as she talked on her cell phone. She had been leaning against the car window but she sat up very quickly.

"You saw him? ... Yes, it must have something to do with that. ... Of course I know that, Walter. If he tries to get it from us he's a fool. He would be heavily outnumbered and severely outclassed. ... No, the best thing you can do is keep him under surveillance and stay out of trouble. Do not engage him under any circumstances. ... Take it in shifts. Get back to the hotel and let Victoria follow him alone for the night. ... I'll wait to hear from you. Do as I say and don't go off on your own."

Integra narrowed her eyes as she hung up the phone.

Amon eyed her warily from the driver's seat.

"Something wrong?" Nagira asked, leaning through the gap in the front seats.

"An old enemy of mine is in town," Integra said bad-temperedly. "It's under control for now but he could pose a serious problem later."

Amon tensed a little. Robin frowned in the seat behind him.

"Great," Nagira said sarcastically.

"It's getting dark," Amon said. "We should go back and pick up the trail in the morning."

"Losing your nerve?" Integra commented with malicious intent. "Isn't it a coincidence that it should be you? Especially since it was out of consideration for your fear that I left my strongest fighter at home."

Amon stopped for a red light and turned on Integra, scowling.

"That was your choice," he said harshly. "I never asked you."

Integra and Amon glared at each other like enemies until Nagira jumped in.

"Hey, do I have to separate you two?" he said. "We're all on the same team here."

Robin swallowed nervously. Amon and Integra turned away from each other at first but they kept throwing nasty looks at each other all the way back to the hotel. Robin hoped that the atmosphere would be better when they got back on the trail the next day.

Story Notes:

"...two of Solomon's top operatives..." - This line can refer to anyone. Father Juliano, Zaizen, it doesn't matter. I threw it in there just to tease.

Onigiri - a rice ball. Using that word reminds me of the Fruits Basket manga. We certainly have the cursed family thing going right now, don't we?