Disclaimer: All of Hellsing and its characters are copyright to Kouta Hirano. Any original characters belong to the author of this fanfiction.

HELLSING

EREBUS

Here standeth the Bird of Hermes,

Eating my own wings to make me tame...

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Initiation

Monday Afternoon, November 24, 2031, Hellsing Estate...

Shivers wracked Alex's body. At first, the cold hadn't really bothered her, but now the temperature had begun to sink into her bones. It wasn't even that cold yet, but even in Alex's long sleeved workout shirt and sweat pants, she was freezing. Outside once again, Alex stood before an obstacle-like course; a roofless building with many rooms. Was she supposed to run this? Behind her stood The Judges, Integra sitting comfortably in a chair that had been brought out. Alucard stood beside his master, arms crossed, shades whole again. Beside him, Seras stood. Reese was on Integra's other side, resetting his watch.

"This test is to measure your agility and endurance," Reese began. "Throughout this course, there are ghouls."

"What?!" cried Alex.

The lieutenant smiled. "Relax, it's just the guys." He chuckled at her sigh of relief. "Your job is to use the paintball gun you've been provided to kill the head vampire, and any ghouls that try to eat you. To pass this course, you must successfully shoot the vampire in the usual designated areas of their body. They will resist, and you will have to defend yourself. Any questions?"

"Time limit?"

"One hour. Also, you will automatically fail if the ghouls or the vampire manage to bite you."

Alex nodded, sighing as she gripped the paintball gun made to look like a handgun. She had also been provided with extra magazines with a kevlar belt around her waist to carry them, but only five, each with twelve shots. If included with the one already in the gun, that gave her a total of seventy-two shots. With a swallow, she nodded, indicating she was ready. Reese waited a moment before turning on the timer, announcing the start of the test.

The girl didn't move at first, looking towards the building. Slowly, she approached the area, gun hanging by her side as she held it with both hands, ready to aim at a moment's notice. It was quiet, and Alex looked over her shoulder to where Integra and the others were, glancing at Alucard. His face remained hidden under his hat, but somehow, she knew he was watching her. The thought he had x-ray vision came back, and she blushed, recalling his visit last night. Alex then shook her head. Now wasn't the time to be distracted!

"Alright, Alex, just stay cool," she told herself firmly. Suddenly, she began to hear moaning, making her stop in her tracks.

"Braaaiiins. We want...brrrraaaains!"

The urge to laugh was sudden. You have got to be kidding me. "You guys are terrible zombies!" she called out. "I don't believe in your performance!"

Some of those zombies laughed. Others had voiced their offence, declaring that they made great undead. Shaking her head once more, Alex continued onward. This place was like a maze in some ways. She didn't know where she was supposed to be heading, so she was taking it slow. Still, she had no idea how large the place was. Deciding to pick up the pace a little, she aimed into every little room, peering around corners and through doors. It wasn't until fifteen minutes in did she find her first ghoul.

The soldier groaned from the opposite end of the corridor, shuffling towards her. Soon, two others had made themselves known. They moved slowly, their zombie-act terrible. Making a unimpressed expression, Alex raised the gun, eyes narrowing behind her glasses as she fired, shooting them over their left breast and in the middle of their foreheads. As they were supposed to, they faked their deaths, falling to the floor.

She walked up to them, rolling her eyes. "Seriously, get some acting lessons."

They just grinned while one said, "Better hurry up, you've only got about forty minutes."

Nodding, Alex carried on, mentally keeping track of her bullet count. Half of her first clip was already gone. It was surprising that she didn't miss her targets on the first try, even though they were moving. Another five minutes passed, and she had encountered more. After the first encounter, she began to miss some shots, only taking down two of the four that she faced. Clip empty, she let it drop to the floor, a hand reaching for her belt, slipping a spare clip out of its loop and slapping it into the gun.

Gun full once more, she raised the toy, hit, miss, hit, hit, miss, miss, hit, and they were down. Five shots left in clip two. She hoped to have at least three full clips before facing the vampire at the end. It was now down to thirty-five minutes. She was running out of time! Running now, she had just dodged the swipes of half a dozen ghouls, ducking and rolling. Suddenly, she tripped, falling hard on her front, knocking her chin off the ground.

"Ow!" she cried out.

No time! Stumbling to her feet, she ran off again, hit, hit, miss, miss, miss, reload, hit, miss. Ten shots left, third clip. Half an hour into the test, the girl had to stop to simply breathe. Where the hell was she going?! Behind her, she heard more groans, and a bead of sweat actually rolled down from her brow and down her face. Wiping it away, she turned around, gasping in shock. There were so many! Even if she had used every last bullet, it wouldn't have been enough. Teeth gnashing, eyes narrowing, she continued to run off. This wasn't a video game. She wasn't going to find extra ammo lying around conveniently. Alex would just have to be stingy with her bullets.

Meanwhile, Integra watched the girl's performance through the use of cameras. She watched the feed on the screen of her tablet, the others staring at it from behind over her shoulders. The girl would have to hurry, or she wouldn't have time to fight the vampire at the end, thus automatically failing her.

"Sir," Seras began, "who's playing the part of vampire?"

Integra smiled. "I managed to get someone out of bed to play the part. It's actually funny that Miss Rows is criticizing the men on their performance as ghouls. She's about to face the best actor of all; a genuine article."

"How come you're not having me fight her, Sir?" she asked.

"Seras, you're her hand-to-hand instructor. I think it counter-productive to have her face you. She'll subconsciously know how you fight. This will at least provide a challenge for her."

Alex stood panting before a room with a closed door—the only room with a door to close. The sounds of ghouls coming closer, she calculated the amount of ammo left. On her way here, she had used up her third clip and then some, now down to two and a half dozen bullets. Though she should have been happy that she had as many bullets as she did, she wasn't at all comforted by the thought. Catching her breath, she stared at the steel door. Twenty-four minutes left, she heard Reese call out from the distance.

Steeling herself, Alex reached out, bringing down the lever to open the door inwards, finding herself in a much taller room, and with a ceiling this time. Brown eyes squinted through the dark, barely spotting something dark standing in the centre. Then she was suddenly blinded by florescent lights flickering on. Before her, Van stood, hands clasped behind his back, eyes closed, head bowed. Well, who better to play the part of a fake vampire than a real vampire who made a habit of blending in like a human?

"Van?" she called out, smiling.

"Good afternoon, Alex," he greeted, opening his eyes. Alex blinked. Something felt off. Van seemed...out of place somehow. The evidence was in his eyes. His face held none of his usual kindness. Was this part of the act? "Twenty minutes," he murmured distractedly.

Snapping out of her confusion, her face hardened. "Right."

"Are you ready?" She nodded. "You must strike my heart and my head within the time limit simultaneously while avoiding my bite in order to pass. If you fail to prevent my attack, you will automatically fail."

"I know this already, let's just get this started."

The vampire nodded before declaring, "I've been told not to go easy on you. You must be vigilante, as the real enemy will not be lenient. They will not care that you have no experience. You aim to kill. Do you understand this?"

Alex stared at him. He was so serious right now, and his tone was cold. What on earth happened? "Van...what happened last night?"

He blinked at first, saying nothing. Then he lowered his gaze, sighing mostly to himself. "I'm sorry. Do not worry about it. I'm fine."

"Are you?" she asked him softly. Even thoughshe hadn't known him long, she'd begun to care for him like a sibling.

A reassuring smile was sent her way. "Yes. I'll be fine. Now, let's begin."

Alex hesitated, but nodded. Now wasn't the time to discuss such things. For many seconds, they stared at each other, Alex poised to aim the gun. Her foot shifted and Van flickered in his spot for a moment just before she threw up the gun, firing once. The pellet missed, Van having shifted to another end of the large room. Alex fired again, but the same thing happened. Next, he was suddenly beside her, reaching for her. She shrieked, ducking out of the way and shooting his hand. The Dracul stared at the orange paint with mild disgust. It was going to take ages to clean this stuff out, and he was going to charge the damn cleaning bill to Integra.

Alex had by this point widened the gap between them. Three shots gone now. Only three shots left in the clip. If only she had taken that moment to shoot him in the head and heart, she might have ended the test there. Still, the girl wasn't going to give the vampire an inch. Her blood was precious to vampires, and she wasn't going to give it up, simply because she needed it more than they did! Aiming the gun once more, she fired, shooting him the shoulder. He grumbled, wiping at the paint before being in front of her again, slapping the gun out of her hand, making her gasp as the toy slid across the floor.

"Dammit!" she cried out.

He stalked her then, silver eyes glowing in the shadow of his face. "What will you do now, human? You have no weapon to defend yourself. Some hunter you turned out to be."

"Hey! Don't be an ass, it doesn't suit you!" she said, grinning suddenly. "Besides, who said I'm defenceless?"

Rather than wait to find out what she meant, he caught both wrists, holding them firmly, leaning forward to make the fake bite. Using his own strength against him, she used his grip to lift herself up and kick her legs out simultaneously into his sternum, kicking him back, forcing him to release her with a grunt. Van rubbed the area she had hit him for a moment, cursing slightly. Hell, she had some strong legs on her. That actually kind of hurt! Standing straight, he sent her an amused smile. Somehow, he was beginning to feel slightly cheered by this match.

Alex dove for her gun, but Van was too fast, already next to it, kicking it away. When she landed, he kicked into her stomach, sending her flying into a wall, which had been previously padded. The floor, however, was not cushioned, and she cried out a little with pain as her knees connected with the ground. For a brief moment, Van gave her a look of concern, but before he could ask if she was alright, she was moving to her feet. Restraining a pained gasp, Alex faced Van, glancing to where the gun had been kicked. Van heard the human call out the remaining time, and thought of repeating it to Alex, since she likely hadn't heard it herself. He decided against it. Time was a distraction, and Alex had to focus on the task at hand.

"Come at me, human, or face death."

"Tch." That was exactly what Alex planned on doing. If only she was fast enough to reach the gun. "Ahhh!" she cried out, charging towards him.

Her approach had surprised him, and before he could prepare a counter-block, she suddenly dove under between his legs, flipping around onto her back, and kicking in his knees. The vampire was forced to the ground, and Alex jumped up, running towards the gun, diving for it once again. Shouting out in triumph as she snatched it up, she suddenly found herself slammed into the wall, Van pressing against her back.

"Nice try," he said. "But still far too slow to face a vampire for real. You're trapped, and now for the taking."

Alex grunted some as he leaned in for that final blow that would fail her. Was this it? Sure, in another few weeks, she could take the test again, but somehow, she felt it wouldn't have mattered. If she failed here, the mark would remain forever. No! With one last ditch effort, she slammed her head back into his nose. He grunted in pain, too stunned to hold her now. The vampire took a few steps back to grip his nose. The chance within her reach, Alex jumped, and kicked off the wall to tackle him to the ground, straddling his stomach, aiming for his chest. Before she fired, he knocked aside her hand, the ground being shot instead. One shot left, fourth clip. With little effort, he flipped them over, pinning her to the floor.

Seeing the scene play out, Alucard's eyes narrowed behind his sunglasses, gloved fingers digging into his arms. A twinge of jealousy had prodded at him, along with a stab of possessiveness. Nearly all of him wanted to go in there and throw the Dracul off Alex, but held himself in check. The Count knew better. Van wouldn't have purposely put them in that position with sexual intentions. And judging by their interaction, Alucard doubted that they would share anything remotely romantic. With this thought in mind, his inner monster settled down before it could even growl. Integra watched his reaction from the corner of her eye before turning back to the screen.

"She's got less than ten minutes now," Reese said.

"I believe she'll be able to do it," Seras said determinedly.

"If she doesn't," Integra started, smiling to herself, "then you, Seras, will have failed as her teacher."

The Draculina gawped, saying in a panicky voice, "You can't be serious, sir! Alex can do it! I swear, she can!" It took a moment for the blonde to realize that Integra was smiling, and thus, not at all being serious. Miffed, she whined, "Oh, sir, why'd you have to be mean like that?!"

Alex pushed and pushed, but Van proved to be too strong for her. Even if he had been a human, Van's weight in muscle in that athletic body would have been enough to hold her down. Still, at least he wasn't sitting on her, so that gave her a bit of a handicap. As he leaned down once more, she headbutted him, both crying out from the impact, Van rolling off her. Alex rolled away, needing to create a safe distance before getting to her feet again.

She groaned while rubbing at her forehead. "Dammit. Nobody wins with a headbutt."

"Indeed," Van agreed, rubbing his own head as he stood. "Please don't do that again—gah!" he cried out as an orange pellet collided with his head. "What the?"

A magazine slid from the fake weapon, as Alex grabbed the fifth clip, slapping it in. The vampire stared to find a look of determination on her face, and knew she was aware that her time was running short. Putting on a serious expression of his own, he began to dodge bullets, a couple hitting his body but never the heart. Was her aim improving somehow? No, that was impossible. It was something else. After she had emptied the fifth clip, she grabbed the last one, her face fierce.

"Five minutes," he murmured.

"Thanks for the heads up," she replied back, training her gun on the vampire.

Silver eyes narrowed as he dodged from one place to the next. The following pellets had then begun to hit him, surprising him. What was going on? Van observed her face, realizing that her eyes had begun to follow him. Ah, so that's how she was doing it. Before he had even reached his next destination, her gun was already ahead of him, firing as he arrived, hitting him in upon his left breast. Van stared at his wound, and Alex took advantage of his short distraction, aiming for his head and firing. The impact of the paint, orange contrasting with the black of his hair, stunned him temporarily, and he actually fell over on his arse.

"Well, I'll be damned," he muttered. He looked up, finding the barrel aimed upon his face.

Alex stood over him, gun trained. "Bang," she said, lifting the gun up in a firing gesture. "You're ash."

He scoffed, smiling. "I guess this means you pass, with only a couple moments to spare."

This information evoked a look of triumph on her face. "Really?! Did I really?"

The vampire chuckled, getting to his feet before escorting the young girl outside to where Integra stood waiting, Seras standing eagerly beside her. Alucard was standing under a nearby tree, arms crossed still as he leaned against it. Surrounding the head of Hellsing, soldiers stood, all grinning, including the ones that Alex had shot. Alex felt nervous again all of a sudden, and wondered what it meant to pass. Did she really pass the test though? In the end, as Alex stood before the older woman, it was up to Integra to decide if she had succeeded. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Alex felt she could have made a fatal mistake somewhere.

"Alexandra Rows...kneel," Integra commanded firmly, no emotion on her face. The girl blinked, swallowing some as she did so belatedly, going on one knee. Integra then drew a sword that Alex had only just realized she was carrying with her, the blade being held tightly in the old woman's hand. "From this day forward, I, Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing..."

That's a mouthful, thought Alex. At the corner of her eye, she thought she saw Alucard grin as if he had heard her thought.

"...accept you, Alexandra Rows, as part of the Royal Protestant Knights, the Hellsing Organization." Alex looked up at her, finding Integra smiling. "You have had your worth measured, and though there is plenty of room for growth, you have proven yourself. Therefore, stand, and accept your first orders from your commander."

Slowly, Alex stood up, face stern as she went rigid like a toy soldier. "Sir," she said.

"You are now known as Cadet Rows. Continue your training with vigilance, and when the time comes, when you face the forces of darkness, show no fear. Prove to them that you are a force to be reckoned with. Do you acknowledge?"

Alex's body moved on its own, saluting the woman with rigidness. "Yes, sir! I accept this honour!"

The woman smiled more. "Good. After you have been fitted for your uniform, you are dismissed for the rest of the day. I would take the time to celebrate your promotion. Good day."

And with that, Integra walked off, and the butler that had accompanied them this whole time approached Alex, bowing slightly before handing her a piece of paper, telling her the location and time of her fitting in the mansion. Alex swallowed, unable to believe everything that had just happened. Promotion? The idea had made her head spin. She'd never received a promotion before, so the moment felt unreal in some way. Soldiers congratulated her, and Seras had laughed and smiled, doing the same before she claimed that she had been up too long and decided to go to bed for the day, and possibly sleep til tomorrow night. Van had also gone, telling Alex that they could speak later once he got some more sleep. Despite all the shouts of applause, Alex couldn't quite hear them. It was just so strange.

She snapped out of her reverie when she spotted dark brown boots in her vision, and she looked up at Alucard. The brunette wondered if Alucard had anything to do with this, as he seemed quietly supportive of her becoming a hunter. What went on in that vampire's head? Alex blinked up at him, the vampire sending her a smirk.

"I believe I owe you a congratulations, but I'm afraid the thought might be lost on you as it's been said plenty of times already." Alex just stared at him, not knowing what to say really. He smiled more warmly, angling his head some. "Best run along. Wouldn't want you running late to your own fitting. I look forward to seeing how you look in your uniform."

Alex blushed. "You're a class A pervert, aren't you?" He grinned, and the girl digressed some. "I should thank you, actually."

He angled his head. "Hm?"

"Well, if it hadn't been for you, I guess I wouldn't have been as prepared as I was for this test. Also, it's because of you I decided on being a hunter. And, there's the fact you've saved my life..." She trailed off, staring out into the field in deep thought. "I've never been sure about my life. It's always felt like a routine that I thought I'd never get out of. Then this whole mess began, and you came along, my life turning into an unpredictable series of events. This must bore you, huh?" she added almost sadly, halfheartedly smiling.

The Count frowned at this. The way Alex had said it made it sound similar to how he felt about his own life. In the short time that he had known her, he could never pinpoint the real reason he was so drawn to her. He knew it wasn't just because she had been Katarina in a past life. There was something else. Now it was clear; like Alucard, Alex was genuinely tired and bored of her life. The only difference, was that Alucard wanted to be defeated by a human to end his miserable existence. Alex on the other hand desired to have change in her life. Now that the opportunity had been presented to her, she was following the path set before her.

"No," he said quietly. "It is not a matter to laugh at."

Alex stared at him, puzzled by his change of tone. Grateful for his understanding, she smiled some. Suddenly she shivered, the adrenaline losing its edge, the cold moving in again. Before she could start heading back for the house, she felt a sudden weight on her shoulders, instantly warming her. It took a second to realize that Alucard was closer than ever, hands on her shoulders, having draped his red trench over her. The fact that it was warm had amazed her. Weren't vampires cold-blooded?

"You should have dressed more appropriately," he commented, lightly teasing her. "Humans are so careless."

"I'm not careless!" she declared loudly. "And I don't need your stupid coat!"

As she began walking off towards the house, she held the coat closer to her, sinking in its warmth, making him chuckle. The vampire began to walk alongside her quietly. After awhile during this slightly long trek, it became apparent that Alex was slightly pained. Scrutinizing her from the corner of his eye, he frowned. Van wasn't particularly rough, regardless of the fact he wasn't supposed to go easy on her. Then he recalled from the feed on Integra's tablet that Alex had landed roughly on her knees. Seeing how she looked pained from simply walking, he had to guess that was the problem.

Wordlessly, he stood closer, picking her up as she shrieked in surprise, "H-hey! What are you doing?!"

"You will need to have ice put on your knees to lessen the pain. I'm sure they're just badly bruised, but the new cadet shouldn't strain herself," he explained, grinning down at her.

Alex flushed some, pursing her lips sheepishly. "Was I that obvious?"

"You were making that face."

"Huh?"

"You make a face whenever you're trying to hold back something."

"What do you mean I make a face?" She looked horrified at this piece of info. "What face?" He grinned, ignoring the question as he carried her inside the mansion, but she was frantic now. "What face?! Alucard?! Tell me!" But Alucard never did.

A/N: I don't have much to say, other than...Alex makes a face. Alucard will never tell her what kind of face she makes, because we all know that he finds it too endearing to run the risk of her stopping. Now, the next chapter will turn serious, as it deals with Van's AND a bit of Alucard's issues. Alex is, naturally, going to confront both of them on the matter, and then for a few chapters, there's going to be massive fluff. Or, at least that's what I currently have planned. Plans change, but hopefully they won't change too much.

Anyway, please leave a review, your thoughts, and any questions you have. Thanks a lot for reading!