"Don't scream."
Ms. Barrie screamed anyway, causing the nosferatu to frown and a growl rumbled in his chest. He decided to ignore the woman as he walked around the kitchen until he came across the refrigerator. Ms. Barrie's eyes were bulging by this point and she ran out of the room.
"THE VAMPIRE'S GOING TO EAT ME! HELP! HELP! MR. DORNEZ!"
Shaking his head, Alucard opened the fridge and bent down to pull out the crisper. He picked out a scarlet orb and shoved the drawer back into place, pivoting on his heals to go to the island in the center of the kitchen. Cutting boards were clean and ready for use, resting in the cut out divots in the counter top. The knives were within arm's reach, and soon the vampire was grasping one of the glistening black handles in his hand, setting the mouse down so he could hold the apple steady.
Anderson was mesmerized by the screen, seeing too many human characteristics in the beast to suite his tastes. Maxwell frowned at the ease with which the vampire quickly sliced up the fruit.
Alucard finished and he rested his fist on the counter, still holding the blade, while he picked out one of the pieces of fruit and handed it to the mouse, making the rodent reach out and take it itself. The mouse immediately began to nibble the apple furiously, almost falling over with its sudden pulse of zeal. The vampire smiled ruefully, and watched the animal eat. "Do you want some water?"
The mouse paused, and then began to eat again.
A cold glass of ice water was set on the counter, then a gloved hand went back to the knife that had been abandoned for a minute or so. The Iscariots looked at the glass, doubtful of the animal's ability to drink out of it.
"Is he stupid?" Maxwell sneered, crossing his arms.
Anderson frowned and watched the screen, asking himself why the vampire was doing what he was doing at the moment. He eyed the hand that was lingering on the knife, and the priest started when the knife was lifted and Alucard licked the blade absently.
"I actually don't mind the taste of apples, but I can't actually eat the flesh."He licked the knife again thoughtfully, still watching the mouse as it finished the chunk of apple. He handed it another piece. "Just don't tell anyone. It can't sustain me… It would be like trying to live off of sugar water."
He licked the other side of the knife before retreating from the screen to some part of the kitchen the Iscariots couldn't see. There was the sound of running water that was soon turned off. "What the Hell is this?" Maxwell said stiffly, and he leaned towards the screen, scrutinizing it. "He likes apples? Vampires can't stomach the taste of food after they are exposed to blood, right?" He looked at Anderson who shrugged. "Defective vampire." The man snorted and leaned back in his chair again as the vampire returned to the screen to hand another piece of apple to the mouse.
"I think you've stuffed yourself enough. You'll explode if you eat too much."
The mouse froze in horror and dropped his slice of apple. Alucard paused and then chuckled, picking up the glass and setting it down next to the mouse. Water had condensed on the outside of it and now the mouse was licking the side of the glass thankfully.
"Interesting way to go about it." Anderson spoke up, catching Maxwell off guard. He hadn't spoken for several minutes, so his voice and what he said caught Maxwell's attention. The younger man scowled without comment.
During this time, the demon had begun packing the fruit away in a plastic container, 'for later', as he legitimized the action to the worried rodent. "Apple expands, you'll feel too full if you eat much more." He put the container in the fridge and went about cleaning the kitchen until Walter broke his concentration with a short laugh.
"You should help out around the mansion."
The vampire paused long enough to frown in distaste. "My job is getting shot at and decapitated by angry Iscariots; killing vampires, Nazis, and werewolves; and taking care of the Police Girl. That's enough to fill the night." He finished drying the cutting board and slipped it back into its place on the counter.
"Think of how much faster the house would get cleaned if you helped." Walter joked to himself.
"Yes, we need an army of dead souls cleaning…and the Hellhounds would only leave the mansion in ruin. I'm not a maid. Arthur tried that already."
The butler let out a loud laugh and put his hand on the counter near the rodent, then eyed the glass that it was licking, with distaste. He ignored it for the moment. "You look good as a French maid."
The Iscariots died a little inside.
"Shut up. I'll set something on fire again if you keep this up." Alucard growled with a careless glare.
Walter looked at the wall, still snickering. "What did you set on fire last time? I remember Arthur went through the roof and he tried to spike your blood with Holy water to get back at you…"
"It was the wine cellar and any other place he had booze stashed. I was actually doing the man a favor. He would have lived an extra twenty or so years if he hadn't ruined his body…thoughtless man."
"Oh." Walter frowned in concentration. "This is the bad part about being old, you forget things. I thought for some reason, that you set his porn on fire."
This caught Maxwell's attention and he frowned to himself.
"No. I burned every magazine I came across, and Arthur knew that so he hid them. Unfortunately, that led to you and the other staff finding them in flower pots…under mats…I forget the other places…. And it was worse still when you hit puberty and started keeping them instead of burning them like I instructed you to do."
"I deny that accusation." The butler straightened his tie and started to walk around the kitchen, inspecting it for dust or food residue.
"I have a very accurate memory, Angel." The red eyes followed the man, sparking with humor.
"I might admit to simple, unavoidable curiosity." Walter leaned towards a distant counter top, trying to look busy.
"You tied me to your bed one time…"
"Oh!" Walter hissed and stood up, clearly aggravated by the subject. "I said I was sorry! And that was over 50 years ago! You never let things go, do you?"
The Iscariots stared at the screen, their faces drained of color.
"You were planning on doing whatever you wanted, despite my protests."
"No." Walter glared at the vampire and huffed. "If you had told me to stop I would have."
"I said stop."
"No. You were cursing at me and yelling in Romanian. If you told me to stop, it wasn't my fault that I couldn't understand you." Walter deflated a little, ashamed of the memory or haunted by the consequences of his actions. "You broke free though…and…damn. I thought you were going to impale me on a stake and set me to die in the yard. I'd never been so terrified in my life…"
Alucard interrupted him with a short cackle. "You'd never run so fast or screamed so loud in your life either. 'Arthur, Arthur! Alucard's gonna murder me!'" The vampire began to laugh while Walter pouted and found the mouse watching them. "I put the fear of God in you, didn't I Angel? I believe you were afraid of girls for a few years after that."
Walter grumbled. "The psychiatrist helped me get over it…but I wouldn't have if Arthur hadn't paid for the sessions. It's a good thing he was afraid I was going to lose my taste for the opposite sex…" He muttered something intelligible. "In the end, it's your fault for making yourself into a pretty, teenage girl when I was at that stage. You could've just been a man."
The Iscariots' eyes were glued to the screen by now. Nothing, not even an army of heathens or the Catholic Pope in a bikini, could have distracted them.
"I did it on a whim." Alucard was leaning on the counter, watching the mouse sniff and wander around.
"You felt like being a fourteen year old girl?"
"Not especially." The crimson orbs followed the rodent over to a roll of paper towels. "I did it without thinking. It doesn't matter to me, as I've explained before. My body is dead and would have turned to dust by now."
"Then why turn back into a man?"
"I'm more comfortable this way. Being short and female gets old after a while…people don't give you the same respect."
"You mean they aren't scared shit-less when they first meet you?"
Laugh. "I missed the cowering and was fed up by the way people would laugh at either Arthur or myself when they were told I was Hellsing's vampire. 'Dracula isn't a little girl.' Is how they'd justify it." The monster reached out to pet the rodent between the ears and the mouse scampered closer to him to receive more attention. "And I hated having to wear the uniform whenever I wasted too many bullets on ghouls or I set his favorite magazine on fire… which happened to be all of them apparently."
They were quiet for a while and Walter just observed while Alucard spoiled the mouse with a bout of petting. "The mouse seems to like you."
"Hm."
Walter looked around for a moment and blinked. "Now I remember, I came in here because I was told you were attacking the chief. Where did she go?"
"No idea."
"Just ran?"
"She screamed for a bit first, though I told her not to. No one ever listens to me, do they?"
"No."The man smiled to himself. "You're in a rather good mood. When was the last time we talked like this?"
Alucard looked up and then unfocused his eyes for a moment. "Six years, I believe. Time flies, whether or not you're having fun."
"So it seems." Walter excused himself to resume to his duties, and the vampire watched him go. When he disappeared, a white glove ran over the surface of the counter and Alucard stood up, still gazing at the door.
"It would be nice if one could just tie time down for a little while, wouldn't it?" He seemed to be speaking to the door, but he looked at the mouse, almost expecting a response, to find it on the edge of the counter reaching out for his sleeve while debating whether or not it would make it if it chose to jump into the vampire's pocket. "And what do you think you're doing? You want me to feed you, water you, and carry you?" He scoffed. "What do you think I am?"
The mouse didn't speak, but sat there expectantly, gazing at the vampire who frowned.
"If you pee on me, I'll kill you."
The mouse rolled into a ball, making Alucard's eyes soften and he growled as he scooped up the fury creature. "And what am I supposed to do with you tonight? You won't survive if I run into the paladin, though if he really did have a hand in sending you then you might be fine. But then there's the stray bullets…I think you look better not covered in gore, do we agree?" A fanged smile appeared and a gloved finger ran over the black fur. "You're too fragile to come with me. The Police Girl wouldn't mind taking a short break from hunting duty to stay here and watch you. The jobs will be finished faster without her…which is always a positive thing. Though…I really despise having to kill ghouls. It's so dull…." The vampire was muttering to himself as he walked through the wall and several other obstructions on his way to a new destination. He soon appeared outside, much to the Iscariots' surprise. The sun had set, though there was still a splash of red in the sky.
Integra Hellsing was standing in the courtyard, focusing intently on a routine she was practicing with an unsheathed sword.
The sight impressed Anderson, and blew away Maxwell who sputtered to himself indignantly. "I didn't know she knew how to fight."
"She did manage to stop me at one time, given that I wasn't actually putting much effort into it."
Maxwell glanced at the priest, stunned, and then returned to the screen.
"Master."
The vampire was ignored for the most part as the woman continued what she was doing.
"I'm leaving the Police Girl behind tonight."
"Why?" came an impatient response, and Integra refused to look at Alucard, panting a little from her exertion.
"She'll babysit the little vermin."
"Oh." She made a pivot and spun the blade gracefully in her hands, adjusting her grip for a different angle. "Fine then."
There was silence for a moment before the demon spoke again. "Do you want to hold the mouse, Master?"
The woman lost her balance and almost let go of the blade, gasping in surprise. She hissed angrily and turned on her servant with flashing eyes, but Integra jolted when she realized Alucard was holding the mouse out towards her not more than five feet away.
"It's saying, 'Pet me please. I'm not scary. I'm soft and fuzzy.' It's just a mouse… Nothing to…"
"GET IT AWAY FROM ME YOU FREAK!"
There was the singing voice of the blade as it cut through the air and then a crunch as it came in contact with something 'fleshy'. The Iscariots couldn't tell what part of the demon the Hellsing woman had made contact with, but the mouse was being removed from the area. Alucard was chuckling.
"Such a temper. Do you need a bar of chocolate, Master?"
"I AM NOT PMSING! IDIOT!"
"Alright, alright. Don't cut off my other arm. If I drop the vermin, the little beast might attack you, and we wouldn't want that to happen."
"GET OUT!"
"But we're outside."
"THEN GET INSIDE! LEAVE ME ALONE IF YOU HAVE THAT DAMN RAT WITH YOU!"
"It's a mouse. And the rat comment hurt its feelings. It needs a hug."
"I SWEAR I'LL NEUTER YOU IN A MOMENT IF YOU DON'T GET THAT THING AWAY FROM ME!"
Alucard was inside now and he looked down at the trembling little creature in his hand. "She has a temper, doesn't she?" He smiled and petted the mouse as he chuckled. "Though it still isn't pleasant when your arm is cut off. Thankfully, it's not a common practice…she usually just uses a gun or throws paperweights and then blames me when they make dents in the wall." He snickered and walked through another wall. "You should've seen her when Walter and I were trying to get her to give up smoking. I'll just say…it was a very expensive and short-lived campaign." Alucard was moving his shoulder and arm and he winced slightly. "Blessed silver takes the fun out of teasing her sometimes, but it's usually worth it." He looked at the mouse and frowned. "What? Name something that's more entertaining than messing with her? I don't eat. There aren't any books here that I haven't read at least twice. I get bored as well, vermin. I'm not satisfied with a wheel, some bread, and a water bottle. I'm not a rodent and I refuse to resort to television or the internet. Those things will rot your mind. It's why people are so stupid nowadays…stupid and fat, unfortunately. Just look at the Americans for your proof. I think it's sad. I bet you would like it there though, plenty of food and overfed cats that wouldn't bother chasing you." He chuckled again. "But radios are fine, even if they don't have the same tone or the sound of moving fingers…"
"Is he actually conversing with the rodent?" Maxwell squinted at the screen. "Do you think you can understand it?"
Anderson gave an uninterested grunt as an answer, his eyes fixed on the vampire who had stopped and gave an incredulous look to the mouse.
"P-I-A-N-O. You don't know what a piano is?" Alucard looked ahead of himself and then shook his head and changed direction. "You only live, at most, to be 3 or so years old, vermin. You're going to die knowing what a piano is."
"What is he going on about?" Maxwell butt in, making Anderson growl.
"Quiet."
Maxwell retired to mumbling to himself crossly. Both of the Iscariots fell to silence when Alucard walked into a room and immediately approached a bulge covered by a dusted, white sheet. He pulled it off, moving the mouse away from the cloud of dust that billowed up in response, angrily protesting the intrusion. A humble, wooden piano and a matching bench were revealed, numbing the men who watched without comment as the vampire set the mouse on his shoulder and started to clear away the remaining dust.
"Actually…" Alucard hesitated and blew away more dust from the keys. "I wouldn't be surprised if the last person to use this piano was Abraham…. Arthur…wasn't the type. And Integra wouldn't lower herself to do something so feminine, which isn't entirely her fault. She started smoking cigars to relieve stress and to appear more…masculine, I believe." He blew away more dust and waved away the cloud. "It's too bad. Abraham was the beginning and the zenith of the Hellsing family, even if Integra comes at a close second sometimes." Alucard retrieved the mouse and set it on his shoulder once more. "He was an interesting man, with a soft spot for children. His own son died, so he adopted his nephew when he knew that his life was waning. Quite generous, inventive, clever…" the vampire gave a disturbing smile, directing it towards the keys. "I almost don't want to touch it now. He'd be furious if he knew I was about to do this..." The gloved hands hovered over the key, then lightly settled on them. They began to move.
Soft. The song was soft, quiet, gradually building and ebbing away like a calm ocean tide. Nimble fingers could have gone faster, but they chose their pace deliberately, easing over the keys, touching the higher notes and introducing the lower ones, echoing with the use of the right pedal, dulled with the use of the left. It was both lulling and awakening, the unrecognizable song the nosferatu coaxed out of the instrument. The mouse rocked in the motion of the traveling hands, enjoying the music. The thin ears twitched, searching for the best angle to receive the clearest notes. When it ended, the vampire began another. This one was faster, more distinct and sharp, but it was calming, setting your heart and mind at ease, as if listening to the rain and thunder rolling down distant mountains. He played another song that somehow sounded like falling snow and the distant howls of wolves, ending it softly, like a melting spring, and then looked at his shoulder where the quiet little rodent sniffed him, whiskers brushing the undead neck.
He smiled with only his lips, raising a finger so he could pet the attention hungry mouse. "A taste of my homeland, I suppose. I don't know any real music, so you'll have to make due with whatever came to mind at the moment. I'll ask Walter to lend the Police Girl his radio so you two can listen to it…if she doesn't have music on her laptop." He got up and took the mouse from his shoulder, but paused and opened his hand to look at it again. "You like Walter?" he smirked. "Most do. However, it's too bad..." Alucard had been walking towards the wall, but now he stopped, and looked at the ground without seeing it. "He has a few behavioral defects, like myself, though they don't appear as often on the surface. There's a cold, sadistic nature in him…but that's probably my fault. Arthur shouldn't have forced the boy on me…" The pondering ended as the vampire purposefully stepped through the wall and made his way to his fledgling's room.
"You should eat something."
Anderson glanced over at the younger man, a little surprised. He shook his head. "After the demon leaves."
"Suite yourself." Maxwell shrugged and looked at the screen with a blank face as the vampire fazed through another wall. "He's like a ghost."
"Hm." Both of the men were quiet now.
Several familiar traits in the room told the Iscariots that Alucard had made it to Seras' bedroom before they heard the girl scream and whine with a hint of impatience and anger. When the nosferatu had entered her room unannounced, she had been in the middle of buttoning her uniform. She spun to the wall and instantly began ranting.
"KNOCK LIKE A NORMAL PERSON! DAMN IT! WHO JUST BARGES INTO A GIRL'S ROOM?"
Alucard waited with a slight frown. "I told you, you should sleep in your uniform. If anything were to happen, the enemy won't wait for you to change out of your pajamas. And since when have you begun to speak to me in such a way…?"
The girl stammered an apology and something about losing her new pet. The demon blinked and held out the mouse, gazing at it with narrowed eyes. "What kind of mischief have you been up to?"
"THE MOUSE!" Seras was pointing at the rodent wildly, stunned by its reappearance. "Is it yours, Master? I didn't know you had a pet. Did you dress it up to look like you on purpose?"
"No." it was almost a growl, and the monster put the mouse on the front pocket of the girl's uniform, startling her. "I'm babysitting it until Walter goes into London this weekend. Right now you'll be taking over. I'll be going alone tonight."
Pale hands were attempting to catch the mouse that ran over her shoulder and tried to entangle itself in her hair. "W..why?" She caught the mouse and sighed with relief, and patted her hair, aware of the fact that it was a mess now.
"You have to babysit the little vermin while I'm gone." Alucard stepped towards a wall to leave.
"What's its name?" Seras blurted out hurriedly, determined to get the answer before her master disappeared. "Does it even have a name?"
"Call it whatever you want." The voice floated through the wall as he left the room. Seras Victoria stared after him for a moment and then giggled, peering down at the mouse in her hands excitedly.
"I don't have to go tonight!" she was rolling on the balls of her feet, not having put on her boots yet. "This is great! And I can make you a proper home now, too…and catch up on my reading…maybe even watch a movie…." She turned with a beaming smile, to her desk, but shrieked and almost dropped the mouse when her master's head melted though the wall.
"And let the pest listen to music."
He disappeared again, leaving the girl dumb and disheveled. She covered her unbeating heart with her hand and gasped out a curse. "He's going to give me a heart attack one of these days….I swear he will." She pushed a few loose strands of hair out of her face and pursed her lips. "Music?" questioning the mouse, it stared up at her silently. Her mouth twitched in humor as she approached the desk and opened her laptop. "Music of all things. You're a mouse, you don't know what music is, do you?" She smirked to herself and sat down, putting the mouse on the desk. As the computer loaded, she eyed the rodent. "You're quite well behaved for a mouse, aren't you? And you're cute and fuzzy." She ruffled the animal's hair and removed her hand to type in her password. "My Master is a weirdo, just don't tattle on me, 'kay? Though, he wouldn't do anything about it. He's pretty laid back in most ways. You'd think he'd be mad at me, because I refuse to drink blood." She made an expression of disgust and stuck out her tongue. "But he doesn't seem to care. He just says I'll drink eventually…and I know I will. Eating normal food…hurts now. And it tastes like ash…just like ash…" the girl became quiet, her eyes reflecting the light from the screen. "But all of this is better than being dead, you know? I just got out of the police academy…I had worked so hard to become part of the police force, and then I die… I was supposed to be a strong law enforcer who took murderers and drug dealers off the streets, just like my father. I was supposed to make him proud, to catch the men, and others like them, that killed my family… I worked so hard and lost it all. You can't blame me for wanting to live for a little longer. It wasn't a selfish choice." She blinked with a small gasp and looked down at the mouse with an awkward smile. "I'm rambling to myself again." Laughter took up a few seconds and she clicked on the keyboard, bringing up her media player. "I'm thankful, really. My Master isn't my favorite person in the world sometimes, but he's a lot more patient with me than most of the people were when I was growing up. And he saved me, in a way. Being a vampire is a lot better than being…well." She coughed with a threatening blush. "…going through the process of becoming a ghoul…. Here you go." She made a final click and a slow, steady stream of music came from the speakers.
"It's probably not what Master had in mind, but all I listen to is soft rock or normal rock. I like songs that have a meaning, or a message, in them…not just random words, you know? It's not the same when you can't enjoy the words and the tune together."
Anderson watched the screen, having forgotten his decision to leave when Alucard was gone, but he remembered when Seras began to make a house out of books for the mouse so it wouldn't run away as she made a different one out of an old cardboard box. The paladin stood, still looking at the screen, and then turned to the door.
"I'll be back." He added before closing the door. Maxwell looked over his shoulder and snickered dully.
"Sounds like the Terminator…from that American movie…. Damn pop culture. I shouldn't know something like that." He grumbled to himself and crossed his arms as the mouse toppled Seras' book-house, making her laugh and shake a finger at him playfully.
I still don't know where I'm going with this story, it's just a fun diversion for now as I focus mainly on school work and my other, more serious, stories...
Just a reminder, I am experimenting with these characters. I do not want to get involved with any debates on how these characters are not acting like they should...
the typos...I blame 90 + degree weather and a raging headache. I ran, swam, ate, drank (water), and I still have it...
thank you ^^