PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS CHAPTER ORIGINALLY CONTAINED SEXUAL SCENES. THESE HAVE BEEN OMITTED. IF YOU WISH TO READ THIS CHAPTER IN ITS ENTIRETY, PLEASE GO TO CIRCE-BAKA[DOT]TUMBLR[DOT]COM.
CHAPTER 2- WELCOME
A carriage ride into the sunset…yes, Walter had to agree; this journey itself was taking the novel approach.
He flipped the page and continued reading, almost losing his spot when the carriage hit a few bumps, but then their ride smoothed. He glanced over the top of the book, first at Alucard who sat next to him and then across to the Florescu maid. For a few short moments, he pondered the silence in the vehicle and why the air around him felt unusual and awkward. To avoid the matter he continued to read.
The words contained on those crisp novel pages seemed to describe Walter's current adventure; 'Before us lay a green sloping land full of forests and woods, with here and there steep hills, crowned with clumps of trees or with farmhouses, the blank gable end to the road.' Walter pushed one curtain back that shielded the interior from the sun's rays. Alucard grunted at the light that touched him and turned away, making Walter chuckle.
Though stricken by war and genocide, this part of Romania was still lush, brimming with vibrant vegetation stretched over the rolling plains. He had never seen such a picturesque landscape before. In London, even at Hellsing Manor, which was expertly manicured, contained no such place. There were green fields, but nothing as untouched and magnificent as this. The wilderness, Walter thought, had a certain charm to it.
Continuing on in the story, however, seemed to present Walter with the troubling task of well...reading. He wasn't opposed to reading, on the contrary in fact. Despite his taste for chaos and adventure, the young butler enjoyed a cup of hot tea and a good book to unwind. But he couldn't bear to read about Jonathan Harker any longer. He found his character boring and far too one-dimension. He closed the book abruptly, causing the maid to jump at the sound.
"So, bored already I see? What happened to biting the bullet and finishing your studies?" Cooed the vampire. Alucard sat cross-legged, admiring Walter as if he were a prized trophy.
Normally, Walter would erupt at any mocking comment made by Alucard. But he displayed a better control over himself in the presence of others, which currently included the Florescu maid. He considered her presence and exhaled gently. "I merely realized my rude behavior and decided it was best to put my book away for later." He wanted to glare at Alucard for he knew his partner was getting a sick satisfaction out of his thoughts. If it weren't for the maid...
Oh my dear Angel, your threats are hollow. But it's precious that you think you could actually do something to get me back. Alucard grinned, smug as usual.
"But really, I'm terribly sorry for being so rude to you, Miss." Walter bowed best he could to the maid who seemed to shy away from his physical gesture.
"Oh, n-no, it's quite alright." She batted her hand three times. "Erm... did you enjoy your book?"
Before replying to her question, he took a moment to get a look at her. She was dressed in a French maid outfit, each part of her clothing appearing professionally pressed and cleaned. Her hair was chestnut, long but neatly held back by a frilled headband and the rest secured in a ponytail. Her bangs were short above her eyebrows with two longer locks before her ears, reminiscent of Alucard's hairstyle. Lastly were her eyes, which were the hardest to view as they darted around the carriage. For a moment the two locked eyes and he found them to bare a golden yellow hue.
"Enjoy it? No, I'm afraid I didn't," he admitted with a light chuckle. "But again, I'm being quite rude to you. Allow me to introduce myself." Walter bowed again, best he could in a seated position. "My name is Walter C. Dollneaz, head butler to Sir Arthur Hellsing."
"Oh my...you're the head butler?" She could hardly mask her shock, bringing both hands to her bottom lip.
"May I have your name, Miss?"
The maid's cheeks began to redden as she looked away from Walter. "I'm Adina...Adina Welsh."
"It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miss Welsh." Walter covered his heart with one palm and tipped his head, making Adina's face color.
Well this is certainly interesting...Alucard smirked from his shadowy corner. Aren't I supposed to be feeling...jealous at this point? His mind erupted with laughter. He sat back, preparing a comfortable position to enjoy the show as the pair of children socialized.
"But um...I don't understand how you could be the head butler. You seem so young."
"Yes," Walter smiled. "I am quite young; 15 in fact. Might I ask your age?"
"Walter, you should know better than to ask a woman her age. How pushy you are." Alucard couldn't help but stick his nose in and comment, receiving a glare from the butler.
"Oh no...I don't really mind. I'm 16." Adina bowed her head and nodded four times in succession.
While Walter knew she was younger, he didn't really believe she was close to his age. He thought a moment, realizing this was the first time he had spoken to a girl. (Alucard not included) In fact, the only women he had been around were the Hellsing maids and occasionally he had passed one of Arthur's dates in the hallway. But this was his first time actually talking to a girl. He found her mousey disposition refreshing, a stark contrast to Alucard's arrogant, pushy nature. Somehow he felt calmed by her presence and had a feeling he would be seeing her for a good portion of this trip.
"But if you really are curious..." Walter began. He smiled. Alucard aside, this would be the only other person he would tell his family history to. "...curious to know why I am head butler, it's because I took my father's place."
"Your father?"
"Yes; Henry Dollneaz. He was the previous head butler to Sir Hellsing. But he was lost in the London Blitz of 1940."
"Oh my...I'm so sorry..."
Blue eyes squinted a moment, recalling a few events of that day five years ago. But he quickly returned to the present with a sincere smile. "No need to apologize. I was the one who offered you the explanation. So you have no need to worry." He noted the sorrowful expression on her face, and believed that 'mousey' really was the best was to describe her. The timid, gentle look in her eyes made Walter want to smile. So he did; softly, like one his age should smile at a girl.
"And you're not worried?" Adina inquired, to which Walter raised an eyebrow in question. "I mean...with all the responsibilities you have."
"Walter...worry?" Alucard chimed in, receiving another glare from Walter. "The Master is a sleazy, messy lout and Walter here has his work cut out for him. But all things considered he is a rather good servant, aren't you?" He pursed those thin pinkish lips at the Hellsing butler.
Walter rolled his eyes, attempting to ignore Alucard's childishness. "Not at all. Sir Hellsing can be a handful, but my father trained me quite well."
"Oh..." The maid drew a finger over her lips, contemplating something that heavily weighed on her mind.
"I take it you are just starting out?"
She looked to Walter. "Yes...my mother has been training me. She's also a maid to Sir Florescu."
For a moment, Walter realized where he was: Romania. But this girl, Adina, seemed to speak perfect English. He thought it best to leave such a question for later.
"I don't have many tasks...mostly I serve afternoon tea. But I'm not the best..." Adina sighed with a frown.
"If you'd like, Miss Welsh, I can offer my services to you. I wouldn't mind helping to show you how to serve the tea properly."
"Ah..." Why does he care? Adina sadly thought. The only person who ever listened to her complaints was her mother and no one else. So why would he care? "You don't need to..."
"It would be my pleasure. Even though I am here on business, I am still a servant. Please," he smiled again.
Alucard took in the children's conversation. It was nice to see Walter act human for a change.
"If you insist..." Adina bowed her head. "Thank you." Her golden eyes moved to Alucard who sat silently observing. "I'm sorry, and you are?"
"My dear," Alucard placed both feet on the floor, cocking his head to one side. "Hasn't your master told you about me yet?" The air within the cabin grew frigid and the shadows darker.
Stop it! Walter turned and glared at his partner, thinking as hard as possible. You're more than enough to intimidate this girl...perhaps even make her faint. Could you please remember Sir Hellsing's orders and try to act inconspicuous?
Fine, fine. The shadows retracted and morphed into their previous shapes. The temperature evened.
Adina sighed, her lungs feeling a little less heavy than earlier. She had been watching the silent exchange between her newest companions when the world around her grew dark and disorienting. And suddenly everything was normal. For a few short moments the maid wondered what sort of relationship they had.
"My apologizes," Alucard said. "But has your master told you about me?"
She shook her head.
"Then best he explain the situation to you."
Walter couldn't argue with that, and waved his palm at Adina apologetically. "Your master, Sir Florescu, if I remember correctly I heard he is big on appearances."
She nodded. "Yes, that is true. He is partial to detail."
"Yes...My Master informed me of this. I have a pair of gloves just for the occasion." Walter's tone was hardly amused.
Adina seemed to find this funny and giggled. "He is not too bad one you get to know him. Master is a strong and knowledgeable man."
Walter heard a cough and turned to Alucard. What? Thought the vampire. It's not as if our Master isn't anything like that. You can't blame me for finding it amusing.
He grunted with the shake of his head, forcing a few dark bangs over his eyes. While the boy had to agree with Alucard's words, he couldn't help but feel he had been away from Hellsing Manor for at least a year's time. Venturing through a foreign country with such a troubling partner was sure to test his patience. A tiny part of him had to admit he was thrilled at such a trip, but his exterior expressed a different feeling altogether.
The carriage slowed to a halt. "Oh, we're here." Adina moved to exit, but Walter moved in front of her with a smile.
"Please," he said and stepped out first, and extended his hand to Adina. Hesitantly she offered Walter hers and walked out. Walter did the same to Alucard, frowning deeply. Even though Alucard appeared as a young female, he hated treating him as such.
Those two hands held in his; Walter contemplated the difference between each. Alucard's were familiar, cold and strong. Adina wore thin gloves on hers with a trim of lace around the wrist. Her own was warm and soft against Walter's. That unfamiliar warmth, he sort of liked it.
"Um, Sir Dollneaz..."
"Yes?" He turned to her.
"Your hands..." She pointed to her own.
"Oh! You're right." Walter fished his coat pocket for the pair of white gloves and put them on. "Thank you, I owe you one."
Alucard stood next to his partner, continuing to laugh at the pair of kids conversing.
Walter spoke to the coach of their carriage a moment until the man left into the Florescu Manor. The young butler took a moment to observe his surroundings. The remaining sunlight illuminated the west-most portion of the manor, which to Walter appeared to be more of a castle or even a church than a home. He struggled to imagine how Hellsing would appear if placed next to Florescu Manor and concluded that the castle-church had to be at least five times bigger.
The manor stood atop a hill with a corresponding valley away from its' base. The surrounding landscape, full, tall trees, collected around the rear of the building, reminding him they were near the Carpathian Mountains. The structure itself was both vertically and horizontally stunning, almost equally proportionate in each direction. Three tall steeples in the front of the building scraped against the clouds, each thicker on bottom with fine points atop them, their finials narrowed like spears. The entrance was structured with cream colored columns and Walter noted they were doric, paused and then laughed. His studies in old architecture seemed to have left a bigger impression on him than he originally thought. The artistic historian voice within him muted a moment as he took in more detail of his current residence.
Most of the building was a light yellow hue, accented with deep chocolates and umbers in the form of a geometric design made of wood that framed the second level windows. Again his eyes wandered back to the front of the mansion, where the doric columns supported the top most spear-shaped tower. At the front there was a dirt walkway that lead to cream-colored steps and at their top was a pair of wooden French doors. Currently they were open.
"Miss Welsh would you be so kind to-" When he turned, he noticed he was alone. Alucard was already walking up the steps and Adina was nowhere in sight. He assumed she was already within the manor's walls and sighed gently.
I wouldn't worry about the luggage right now, Angel. It would be rude not to greet our temporary landlord first. Alucard's words drifted into Walter's conscious. He released another sigh, nodded in agreement and followed.
The interior of the manor was quite lavish, and again Walter was comparing it to that of Hellsing. He wasn't sure if Mr. Florescu was richer, snobbier or a combination of both compared to Arthur. Walter shrugged and walked into the center of the foyer to observe. The dark brown hue had also been used on the inside for all of the walls and some parts of the ceiling. For the most part the ceiling was cream, speckled with an interesting texture that looked similar to lumpy oatmeal. The walls, however, were intricately laid with floral patterns, ingrained into the wood. The space between the ceiling and walls was crowned with three-dimensional golden designs, most of which Walter identified as the fleur-de-lis. Considering Miss Welsh's attire and the designs within the household it was safe to say that Mr. Florescu had a taste for French culture.
"Bine ai venit," (Romanian: Welcome.) a deep voice spoke.
Walter, who was lost in the lavish interior, remembered himself. Alucard and him looked to the staircase at the center of the room where a tall bearded man stood, dressed in what appeared to be a decorated military uniform. His face was wrinkled and his hair brown, curled around his eyes and cheeks. Though his eyes were the most interesting: wise and calculating. From this distance Walter couldn't guess their color, but he was sure if close enough, he wouldn't want to look this man directly in the eye.
"Ah," Alucard smiled, "Vă mulţumim pentru primirea ne în casa ta frumoasă." (Romanian: Thank you for welcoming us into your beautiful home.) The vampire bowed his head slightly, far forward enough that his pillbox remained atop his head.
The older man returned the smile.
Walter was beginning to understand this. This man had to be Mr. Florescu and both were speaking in Romainan. It was hard to remember that Alucard spoke in this way long before he came to London, and long before he was a creature of the night. Needless to say, there were many things Walter would have to get used to on this expedition.
"Majordom tau arata confuz. Nu stăpânul său îl educe în limba Română?" (Romanian: Your butler looks confused. Did his master not educate him in Romanian?)
Alucard chuckled as the man came towards him. "Eu nu s-ar baza pe de omul cel vechi pentru astfel de lucruri. Sunt sigur că aţi uitat că vorbesc o limbă diferită." (Romanian: I would not rely on the Old Man for such things. I am sure he forgot that you speak a different language.) He sighed with a vindictive smile and gestured towards Walter who withheld the urge to scowl. "Tu nu ştii limba Engleză corectă? Cel mai bine vorbesc că, dacă doriţi să-l înţeleagă.' (Romanian: You do know English correct? Best you speak that if you want him to understand.)
"De acord." (Romanian: Agreed.) The man sighed with a shake of the head. Arthur really was incompetent, he thought. "You are Hellsing's butler, I presume?"
"Uh, yes." Walter bowed. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Sir. You are Sir Dumitru Florescu?"
Mr. Florescu nodded. "I trust that your journey was a pleasant one?" He looked to Alucard who nodded.
"It was rather interesting, I must say." Alucard grinned, and flashed a stare towards the butler. "Though my butler kept me more than entertained on our little trip."
"Bun, bun." (Romanian: Good, good.) Mr. Florescu gestured towards the sofas at the far left of the room. "Te rog, nu vă va sta astfel încât să putem vorbi mai mult?" (Romanian: Please, won't you sit so we may talk more?)
The vampire chuckled. It seemed Sir Florescu was a traditional man and paid no mind to the servants as Arthur did. He treated them as they were, as servants.
Alucard grinned. "La fel de mult ca m-as bucura sa vorbesc cu tine, cred că e mai bine am merge la camera mea cu Butler. Eu cred că e timpul îi dau o lecţie în limba noastră maternă.' (Romanian: As much as I would enjoy talking with you, I believe it's best I head to my room with the butler. I believe it's time I give him a lesson in our native tongue.)
Those dark, calculating eyes looked to Walter. He felt uneasy with their gaze upon him and sighed when Mr. Florescu looked back to Alucard. "Poate că sunt corecte. Te rog sa-mi pentru cina in seara asta. Ne-am pregătit masa de obicei câteva ore mai târziu, în aşteptarea pentru sosirea ta." (Romainian: Perhaps you are correct. Please join me for dinner tonight. We have prepared the usual meal a few hours later in anticipation for your arrival.)
"Da, vă mulţumesc pentru ospitalitatea dumneavoastră. Pentru moment, voi retrage în camera mea cu majordom."(Romanian: Yes, thank you for your hospitality. For the time being I will retire to my room with the butler.) The corner's of Alucard's mouth curled into an excited grin as he grabbed one of Walter's arms, holding it tight to his chest. Those molten orbs held their gaze with Mr. Florescu long enough to convey what could not be said with words about Alucard's ownership of Walter. "Acum, dacă ne veţi scuza." (Romanian: Now, if you will excuse us.) Alucard pulled Walter to the foot of the staircase where Adina waited. She explained how to get to their rooms Alucard grinned. "Oh and by the way, you forgot to the get luggage, Wal~ter," cooed the girlish vampire.
"Ah what? But you told me that..." Blue eyes locked with Mr. Florecu and quickly darted away. "Yes, Sir." Walter bowed to Alucard who was escorted up the staircase by Adina, leaving the Hellsing servant to collect the bags and boxes.
THIS IS WHERE THIS CHAPTER CUTS OFF BECAUSE OF OMITTED MATERIAL, FOLLOWING THE TOS OF . PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS CHAPTER ORIGINALLY CONTAINED SEXUAL SCENES. THESE HAVE BEEN OMITTED. IF YOU WISH TO READ THIS CHAPTER IN ITS ENTIRETY, PLEASE GO TO CIRCE-BAKA[DOT]TUMBLR[DOT]COM.