Seras came across Ilona scratching at the lock of Integra's office; mumbling to herself as she did so. Seras crept up behind her quietly.
"Boo!" Seras shouted next to her ear.
"HOLY FUC-" Ilona jumped and hit her head off the door causing it to break open.
"Now that's what I call using your head Ilona!" Seras laughed at Ilona who had her face flat on the floor.
"Good God! Don't do that! You scared me half to death...No pun intended." Ilona rubbed her face and took the hand that was extended by Seras.
"Look at it this way; even if I didn't scare you, Sir Integra is certainly going to kill you when she's seen you've been in here." Seras pointed at what used to be the door.
"But that wasn't my fault! You scared the shit outta me and this place is creepy enough! That's why the door is in bloody tatters! Ya blood suckin' bugger!" Ilona sneered at Seras as they both approached Integra's desk.
"Never did lose that Scottish accent did you?" Seras peered over the desk, scanning the papers.
"Meh, I guess it just comes out sometimes...AH-HA!"Ilona jumped at a small drawer that had an even smaller lock above it. She gave it a shape tug but it didn't even budge.
"What on earth could be in there that has any relevance to our search? Or are you just being nosey again?" Seras gave it a small tug as well with the same result.
"I bet she has a small tracking device thingy in there, showing where Vlad is!" Seras gave her a disbelieving look, "...Okay well maybe it's a screen that shows different places in the Manor...you know to keep an eye on everyone?" Seras laughed.
"Oh yeah? You really think Master would let a camera be put in his room? Better still, do you think the Nurses would be happy allowing a camera on their patients?" Seras stated with her hands resting on her hips.
"Okay I don't know, but I do want to know what's in there!" Ilona tugged repeatedly at the drawer.
"Nosey."
"Button it'."
Seras moved Ilona's hands away as her arm turned into black flames; then slipping into the small lock and a small 'click' could be heard. Ilona hugged Seras's solid arm.
"Thank youuu~" Ilona purred while giving her arm a quick squeeze.
"Aafh, I'm nosey too." Seras smiled as she gently pulled at the handle, causing the drawer to guild open.
The first thing that was visible was the tin of Integra's fine cigars and matches, under that was a few newspapers.
"Huh. That was disappointing." Ilona stated looking dimly at the draw.
"Yeah." Seras cocked her head to one side and then at Ilona.
"Question is why would she keep this under lock and key?" They both said causing them to laugh.
"Well," Ilona stated, "It's gotta be the newspap-"Ilona was cut off by the sound of footsteps at the end of the long hall.
"What the hell?" Integra's voice could be heard at the end of the hall, her footsteps quickening at the sight of her door.
"Shit!" Seras's half yelled, heading for the doors, about to do a runner.
"Hold on." Ilona was trying to read the headline of one of the upside down newspapers.
"YOU LITTLE GITS! ILONA! SERAS! THIS HAS YOUR NAMES WRITTEN ALL OVER IT! YOU'RE FOR IT!" Integra started running down the hall.
"ILONA! MOVE!" Seras screamed at her.
Ilona grabbed the box of cigars and bolted it out the door with Seras; Integra hot on their heels.
"Why'd ya grab 'em?" Seras nodded her head at the tin of cigars in Ilona's hand as they reached the main stair case.
"Because if I'm not getting any, then she's certainly not getting any of these!" Ilona laughed shaking the tin in her hand. Seras's rolled her eyes and caught sight of Integra catching up.
"Spilt up?" Ilona started running up the stairs.
"Works for me! Good luck!"Seras yelled behind her as she went down the stairs.
"BOTH OF YOU STOP AT ONCE! OI! YOU LISTENING TO ME? ILONA! SERAS!" Integra yelled at the two of them; thinking it highly unfair those two young and immature vampires were tag-teaming against their older master. Integra sighed and then inhaled deeply.
"ALUCARD!" Integra bellowed causing Alucard to appear from the shadows.
"My Master." Alucard grinned, his hat and glasses removed.
"I trust you were watching." Integra said while folding her arms across her chest.
Alucard merely smirked at her; that was the best she was going to get out of him.
"I want to level the playing field a bit, they paired up and now we need to show them how good a tag team we are!" Integra said angling her at the step of a stair case.
"Ever the competitive one I see...well then, orders?" Alucard smirked as Integra turned to him.
"Search and...win this bloody game for me."
Ten minutes later, third floor of the Manor
Ilona had run for the past fifteen minutes without rest and was pretty sure that no one was behind her. She slowed to a walk; she loved the upstairs corridors because the windows had huge pains glass which flooded the entire hall with moonlight. The day had been so hot that the skies where completely clear and little dots of light could be seen gleaming. Ilona pressed her face up to the glass to get a better look; her mouth fell open at the beautiful stars shinning above her. Briefly her eyes fluttered down to the horizon where there was a purple and pink glow, the setting sun. Her eyes readjusted to focus on the glass in front of her, no reflection at all. She smiled.
"So I guess, like the stars, vampires are here but somehow... not here, we're like a setting sun, once we were alive but now just a glimmer of what used to be," she looked down at her pink arms, "I'm really not human anymore am I? We must be setting suns, not quite alive and not quite dead." She looked back out the window again and then she caught something glinting at the corner her eye.
"Ooohh...shiny..." Ilona turned herself around at the thing glimmering in the moonlight. She bent down to grab it but it rolled, which puzzled her as this floor was completely flat.
'How could it roll?' She thought but guessed it must have been a creaky floor board she stepped on which made it roll away.
She walked to grab it again but it rolled again, so again she tried but again she failed. Ilona scratched the back of her head, now annoyed and confused. She stepped very lightly towards the thing as it was gradually making its way down the hall. Ilona positioned herself in front of it, crouched and pounced at it. That just made it roll to the end of the hall leaving Ilona on the ground behind it. She growled at it and ran after it, she ran full pelt and it went faster, she was concentrating so hard on it she didn't notice the dark figure in front of her. Then she looked up, screamed and skidded to a halt. The figure crouched down and picked up the thing Ilona had been chasing. Alucard looked up at Ilona with a huge grin on his face; panic disappearing causing her to sigh.
"I haven't actually done this yet...despite our wedding being so close." He extended his hand which held the glimmering object Ilona chased, a ring.
Ilona's eyes widened as she looked at him: right arm holding out a ring, down on one knee and eyes shining brown in the moonlight.
"Ilona, will you marry me?" His voice echoed through her body and down the hall.
Ilona closed her eyes and held out her hand, then looked into his eyes.
"With every fibre of my being I love you..." She looked into his dark brown eyes as he looked into her blue eyes, "Yes. Yes, a million times over...yes."
She smiled as he slipped the ring onto her finger; he got up and pulled her into his arms and spun her around, she laughed as did he. Vlad looked into her eyes and she kissed him in the moonlights glow. They pulled apart as his hand cupped her face and hers lay on his chest.
"I love you, Vlad."
"As I love you, Ilona."
Elsewhere down stairs
Integra rubbed her hand, as it hurt from smacking Seras's head. She looked at the newspapers in the draw, she pulled one out, her eyes scanning it carefully and she flung it at the table. She turned away and looked out the window at the night sky.
"I can't tell him...not just yet. Not now. Not with the wedding in three days time...he can't know... that... she's alive."