Alucard's POV

I was slumped over at my desk. Looking over intelligence from the Styria region. It looked as if somehow Carmilla and her four sisters remained alive, and were still somehow regaining control over the provinces I had broken apart so diligently. I was angry. I thought they were dead. How was it possible that those four hemorrhoids found a way to revive themselves?

The slam of the castle's front doors pissed me off royally. Iona knew how I felt about the sounds when I was in my study. Which is why she always stayed away when I would lock myself in here for days. But in all honesty, I needed a break. I needed to go check up on her and see what nonsense she was getting up to now. I walked to the end of the hallway where I would usually look down and see her playing outside in the summer sun. But it was raining and her sword was on full fucking display.

It took a split second for me to gather what was happening. For one, I had seen some large night creatures in my day, but this one towered fifteen to twenty feet above Iona and her tiny body. She really didn't think she was going to fight all by herself, did she? I grabbed my sword from my office and shifted my way to the front doors.

I joined Iona's side less than two minutes later.

"Why the hell didn't you call for me?!" I yelled.

"Alucard, really? Why do you think I shut the castle doors?!" She yelled back annoyed.

"I'm just here to defend my home, and quite frankly I could've taken care of this without you!"

We both turned back to the voice as it started speaking,

"So I see Dracula's son has a special friend… How glorious will it be to kill two vampires in one day." The laughter that left his mouth sent chills down my spine. Issac, a human, a part of my father's council, had come back for revenge. How lovely…

"Iona, you protect the castle and the Belmont Hold. I'm going to take care of him." And in an instant, I was gone. I left Iona to her own devices, letting her do what I knew she was perfectly capable of.

"So you leave your precious little prize alone, do you? I can take care of you myself." he pulled out a long whip-like weapon covered in sharp studs and flung the end at me.

"What do you want?!" I yelled harshly.

"You dead." That was all he said before we started an all-out battle. He swung like hell at me, I was narrowly avoiding his constant attack. I let my eyes narrow while honing in on my target. His proximity to me, the way he moved, and his weapon of choice were all things I took into consideration before letting my sword strike Issac through his back. He flung his whip at me once more before I spun the blade in his chest.

The gurgling sound that escaped his lungs was a sound I had heard one too many times before. I was willing to let him die for this though, no one comes and attacks my home, let alone my dearest love,

"Consider this your one and final warning. Never, while you are alive or if you come back in the afterlife, ever set foot on my home again." I slid the sword from his chest and he slumped over on the ground. I took a few moments to watch the life leave his eyes. I turned to meet Iona's almost horrified gaze,

"Is this what our lives will be like from now on Alucard? Little do you know, this has become a daily occurrence. Yesterday evening I fought a slurry of people who claimed to be from the east. I offered my aid but I was met with swords and pitchforks. I can't keep doing this. I was human once, you have to remember that. Taking the lives of these people is not in my nature." I watched as the tears fell from her sad eyes. I walked up to her, taking her sweet face in my hands,

"Why didn't you tell me?" I pondered.

"What's the point in telling you Alucard," Her voice was angry, the first time I ever heard her talk this way, "You lock yourself in your study for days, no weeks, at a time and are unreachable. I'm tired of it. I'm tired of being alone in a place that's supposed to be our home." She pulled herself out of my grasp. I felt her pain, the rings were doing what they were made to do.

"Iona… Please, I'll do better…" It took me a few moments to fully gather what I wanted to say, "I've always lived a lonely life. Having people around just isn't what I'm used to. Caring and tending to others is something I've hardly ever done, but that's no excuse for how I've treated and continue to treat you." I looked down at my feet.

"What I'm trying to say is that with you here, I don't know what to do. I want to care for you and tell you that you're safe. But I know everything I would say would be a lie. You're not safe here. You're not safe anywhere now that you're a vampire. There are wars starting in Braila, and governments taking over the homes of citizens and leaving them on the streets. It's a cruel world out there. I don't know what I need to do but…" The tears pushed out my eyes, disguising themselves in the rain, "Maybe it's best that you go. Go write your own story and fix the bad in this world."

I never once looked up when I heard her shift away. The rustling of her clothes and then the silence was the last thing I heard of her. The rain gradually got more intense, almost as if it was responding to my emotions.

I made my way back towards the castle, noting how silent everything had become. Sypha and Trevor were gone and I had just wished my one, true love away. I found myself heading towards what I knew best, my childhood bedroom to reflect. But nothing came to me. Just the tears that flowed from my eyes and the thunder that shook the castle walls. I was… Alone.