I do not own the rights to Hellsing

Part One:

The Child That Never Cried

Integra had born a healthy girl who was given the name Prudence Wallace Hellsing. She was indeed a lovely child, who, acted as all young children should, save for one strange flaw, or blessing, depending how one perceives this peculiarity. She never cried, not for food, not from fear, not from falling. She never so much as whimpered. Integra was uncertain of what to make of this oddity. She made sure to have the child carefully looked after in case something ill were to occur, being naturally afraid that the girl might not give any warning if she was suffering. Other than the mentioned flaw, Prudence grew up like all children do. She was given ample affection from her nanny, her mother, Walter, and Seras, who, when she was off duty found playing with Prudence a lovely distraction. Walter and Integra would from time to time joke about Seras having a better maternal instinct than even the mother.

However, one of the most important members of Hellsing would have very little to do with the mother let alone her daughter. He did only that was asked of him during the relative peaceful time that had fallen upon the soldiers of Hellsing. Walter once joked that perhaps it would be in the best interest for Alucard to be "put up" so as to "spare him" of the mundane spell that had come to pass. Integra responded only with a blank stare before understanding that her butler was only joking. Perhaps, she would have comprehended Walter's meaning sooner if she had not been toying with the idea seriously. Upon thinking such thoughts she would quickly brush them off as her being paranoid, but part of her was unsure of his motives after the estrangement.

When Prudence grew to the tender age of five, illness struck at a seemingly healthy child. Her tawny complexion inherited from her mother began to grow ashen, and large dark circles began to appear underneath her once bright grey eyes. Integra had oddly enough been the first to notice the change in appearance despite the fact that the nanny saw Prudence early in the morning. Only after doing what needed to be done to maintain an organization such as Hellsing, did Integra visit with her daughter early that evening. But, instantly upon seeing her child, Integra knew something was amiss with the girl. Mrs. Norris, the nanny, tried to pass it off as nothing serious, saying that whatever it was it seemed to have no effect on the child's behavior. She recommended that Prudence be allowed more time to play outside in the sun. Integra agreed, but about the time that dusk began to approach she could not help but feel compelled to have her daughter checked by a physician after Prudence wished to retire to bed early that night. Integra had asked Walter to call in an appointment to her doctor for the next morning. She had checked upon the girl later that night to find that Prudence's breathing seemed a little ragged.

Walter had come into check on Integra in her office. Much to his surprise she sat in the large leather chair facing her desk. She appeared to be in deep thought about something, especially since she paid no heed to the large oak door roaring back on its hinges as the butler began his way into the office. Walter made a quick mental note to have the hinges oiled next time he had the chance before he continued over the threshold to the room.

"Ms Hellsing?" he questioned in a soft voice so as not to approach her blindly and cause her distress. But, while Integra was indeed caught off guard she remained calm and collected where others would have jarred from the unexpected intrusion.

"Walter?" she asked, waiting for him to continue on with whatever information he thought was fit to disturb her.

"I came to ask you if you would like some tea before bed," he answered with a calming voice, knowing that Integra was half expecting him to bring some news of illness regarding Miss Hellsing.

Integra gave a nod of her head despite the fact that her thoughts appeared to have left the conversation after Walter revealed that he was not the bearer of bad news. The butler gave a small smile and a slight bow before moving to exit the office.

"Walter," Integra began. Her very words halted her faithful servant as he turned courteously to observe the speaker. Once Integra had seen him move to face her, she continued. "Am I getting too complacent?" she asked, breathing a small sigh. Walter was not sure if the sigh was one of weariness, or if it was a small laugh at her question.

Walter smiled. "Compared to?" he began, half amused that she even cared.

Integra gave him an icy stare which would have frozen a lesser man. "No," he replied and gave a lift of an eyebrow. "A lioness is one of the most feared predators in her natural habitat. She can easily rip out the throat of a man with little thought or provocation with her mere mouth -- the very same mouth with which she corrects and loves her young."

Integra found herself fighting back a smile at her impertinent question. "Then when does the worrying end?" she asked softly, hoping against hope that the question had gone undetected by the butler.

Walter had heard the question despite Integra's attempt to muffle it. "Ah," he began with a tilt of his head as he appeared to be recalling a particular instance. "Yes, same question only a different Hellsing," he added with a grin.

"My father?" She lifted a brow, amused.

"And his father and mother as well, I am sure, asked the very same question. And, your father, noble man as he was, came to the 'dreadful' conclusion that he would be plagued with this the rest of his life, and he was correct.

Integra gave a small grin and glanced away. "Thank you," said she mouthed silently.

--

The next day the call from the doctor was received, the only problem was that the child was no where to be found. Integra could hardly believe this to be true, and upon being informed that Mrs. Norris was amiss, she quickly recalled the conversation they had the previous day.

"How could she?" was Integra's response to the situation. She had no clear idea where the nanny had taken the young girl. She and Walter had immediately called for a quick survey of the property to see if they could find the missing pair, but they were only met with anxiety. Almost immediately afterward, they were instantly informed that Mrs. Norris had returned with a "very ailing Miss Hellsing." Integra wanted to know what they meant exactly by "very ailing" when she made her way in to see the physician.

Once she had entered the room, she saw much to her horror her child's breathing reduced to painful sounds of wheezing as her chest heaved heavily for air. Prudence's complexion had become deathly white, and the lids covering her eyes had darkened. Integra glanced down to observe that her daughter's arms were horribly burnt and blistered.

"What is the cause of all of this?" she demanded glaring over at the nanny more so than the doctor.

"We had agreed that she should get some fresh air-"

"Indeed! But, I had also instructed you not to take her anywhere until she was seen by a doctor," Integra scolded. She quickly turned her attention to the physician at hand.

"What is going to happen to her?"

"I have instructed for a nebulizer to be sent with medicine, it should not take long," he reasoned calmly.

"What is the matter with her?"

"It seems she has a rare 'allergy' to the sun," he said glancing down at Miss Hellsing's arms. "Mrs. Norris said that almost instantly once they had gone outside that Prudence began to show signs of a severe sunburn on her exposed arms and a portion of her uncovered legs. By the time they got inside, the sunburn had escalated into what we have now."

"Thank God, I had the foresight to have dressed her in a wide brimmed hat," Mrs. Norris responded.

"Foresight, indeed!" Integra mocked agitated by not only the woman's impropriety, but also by the sound of her voice as well.

As the doctor had said, it was within no time that they had set up the breathing machine, and had placed a small mask to the young Miss Hellsing's face. Her breathing appeared to have returned back to normal, but there still was no return of the girl's natural color or vibrancy in regards to her complexion.