Do not own! Not mine!
Flora's POV:
I woke up the next morning as Walter gave me my breakfast, feeling very content. I ate quickly, as he told me we were going to FINALLY go get the "lady-like" clothes I needed for this lifestyle. As he walked out, I went into the bathroom to change, and then blushed as I pulled a long black hair off my pajama top. Last night was definitely on the list of "really wish that never happened". I yanked on my top and skirt, and then my cheeks got even warmer as I remembered what I had sleepily muttered as he lay me back down. "You smell good..." He probably was laughing his undead pants off in the basement right now. While he was rocking me after I calmed down, I had accidentally inhaled his scent. His clothes smelled like blood and gunpowder, which actually was quite nice, but there was something more, deeper. A light earthy musk, kind of spicy, lingered about him, which made me want to sniff him like a favorite stuffed animal. I blushed deeper, remembering how nice he smelled. Definitely one of the "never happened" moments.
I walked out, waiting for Walter to hurry up by the car and playing with the music Integra had generously given me. "Ready now." he said, and I looked up, then quickly back down, getting in the car silently as Walter sat in the driver's seat. Alucard, for some reason, sat in the back with me. I looked out the opposite window, listing all the Japanese numbers I knew, than repeating them backwards. That took about a minute, and then I was clueless. I listened to my music, moving onto a different song, hoping it could calm me down.
"Remember when you ran away and I got on my knees and begged you not to leave because I'd go berserk?
Well, you left me anyhow and then the days got worse and worse and now you see I've gone completely out of my mind!
And,
They're coming to take me away haha, they're coming to take me away hoho hehe haha
To the funny farm where life is beautiful all the time and I'll be happy to see those nice young men in their clean white coats
And they're coming to take me away haha!" It sang, and hummed along, smiling a little. This always calmed me down.
A hand on my knee made me squeak and turn slightly, seeing Alucard bending closer to me. "May I listen?" he asked, looking pointedly at my earphones. I gulped and handed an earbud over, my peace of mind completely shattered. Because the headphones weren't all that long, he was forced to edge closer to me, leaning in, and I focused every microbe I had on the song, desperately hoping I wasn't blushing. It ended and he jerked away, smirking. "Your taste in music astounds me as always." he said smoothly, leaning back and laying his hands across the arm of the seat. I shrugged silently, looking down at my music and moving to a song I knew was completely normal.
Alucard's POV:
She shrugged and looked down, not saying anything. I frowned slightly, feeling annoyed. If Integra's direct orders did nothing to keep her away, then why did one tiny insignificant comment like that make her want to avoid me? Was she that embarrassed over what she said? I experimentally nudged my arm down, just barely touching her shoulders, and she flinched, flushing slightly and hunching over, away from me. My frown grew deeper. I had no wish to actively pursue her as such, but much as I loathed admitting it, in a sort of way, she had become almost...a friend. I certainly enjoyed talking to her, and now she wouldn't even look at me, all because of some muttered comment. I growled under my breath, but luckily she didn't notice.
I remembered how I had felt last night, how despite my harsh inner comments, my body ached to feel hers again, her softly beating heart snug and safe against my chest, my arms around her, listening to her quiet breathing as she slept. I shook my head rapidly. That FEELING was back again, that longing for her that made my head spin. That curiosity as I glanced at her, seeing her too-small clothes tight against her full, ample chest, snug against her curving hips, that made me wonder how those hips, that chest, would feel pressed against my own. That hunger for the ambrosia of her virgin blood, fresh from her warm body and willingly given. But there was no chance of any of those things happening. She was obviously not attracted to me. If I even HINTED at touching her sexually Integra would lock me back in the basement and Flora would cover me in as much silver as she could find to boot. She rightly guarded that sweet nectar of hers carefully, and would probably resist me taking it by force. It wasn't FAIR.
Flora's POV:
There seemed to be something bothering Alucard, because when I dared to look up he was frowning to himself, growling under his breath and muttering. I wondered what it was, then shook my head. It probably had something to do with me. He then pushed his glasses back up, slouching in his seat and folding his arms across his chest, apparently going to sleep. About ten minutes after that Walter stopped the car, saying that we had arrived. He got out quickly, and I halted about midway, looking from him to Alucard in confusion. He saw the look and frowned slightly, leaning down and then sighing. "Wake him up, if you would." he asked politely, and I stifled a gulp, getting back in and poking him. He didn't move, and I felt a trace of annoyance. "Alright vampy-" I growled, not hearing Walter's chuckle at my nickname for him. "-you've woken me up a bunch of times when I wanted to sleep, so now it's payback time. Up and at 'em."
He didn't move, and I pondered my next option, knowing he wouldn't like it, and then shrugged. Whatever. I lightly smacked the back of his head, and he jerked, growling dangerously, but stopping when he saw me. He yanked his glasses down slightly so he could glare at me. "I would advise against doing that again. You might lose the arm." he growled, and I stuck my tongue out at him. "Then I'd advise YOU not to sleep so darn deep. I won't do it then." I shot back, getting out of the car. He chuckled behind me and suddenly reappeared right next to me, looking smug. I glared at him and pointedly moved closer to Walter. We walked inside, and I gulped at the sheer volume of clothes, feeling rather inadequate. "I took the liberty of finding your sizes." Walter said briskly, leading me to an aisle with tops. "These should all fit. You may select ten, which will give me an approximation of your tastes so I may act accordingly when I come here again."
I nodded, gulping and wading into them. After about five minutes, my impression of rich young girls was increasingly negative. Not only were they mostly too PINK, but several had low necklines that weren't at all proper by American standards, let alone by the ever polite English. Alucard wasn't helping either. "How about this one?" he said innocently, holding up a pink, frilly top. "Soak it in gasoline and light it. That's way too pink for anybody to wear, let alone look good in." I said tartly, glaring at him. He smirked, and I rolled my eyes, ignoring him. "I like this one." he purred, and I winced. "You would, creepy vamp..." I muttered, seeing the excessively low cleavage. He pouted and put it down, actively searching for something else to tick me off. "This one?" he asked hopefully, and I raised an eyebrow. "Umm...do I even want to know?" I asked, my eyes seeing a lot of pink, a lot of glitter, and a LOT of cleavage. "Probably not." He said cheerfully, and I sighed, leaning against a handy clothing rack.
"Here's a thought. Go try and actually HELP me with this." I snarled, and he pouted, rustling around. "This one." he sighed, looking dejected. I beamed, seeing the dark color and interesting shimmer. "See, is that so hard?" I teased him, grabbing it and putting it in the basket. "Yes." he said mournfully, looking miserable. "Well, I can give you some of my blood if it's that hard for you." I said apologetically, and he brightened. "Really?" I snorted. "Nope. Aren't you the all powerful vampire? Shopping and being well behaved while doing so is something everybody does." I said as I giggled, and his face fell. "How cruel you are to your servants." he moaned, and I rolled my eyes. "What about Walter?" He blinked, thinking about it. "He doesn't count." he said archly, folding his arms and leaning on a clothing rail in a posture of "regal sulk". I smirked and continued, with Alucard helping (occasionally) and we were done within a few hours.
Walter stood by the doors, looking sternly at Alucard, who meekly handed over his share of my new clothes. "He was not any trouble?" He said slowly, and I smirked. "Why?" I asked, curious. "It never took this short when he shopped with Integra. Once I even had to stop a manager from calling 911 because she was shooting him with silver." I looked up at Alucard, interested, and he suddenly developed a fascination with the sky ahead of him. "Really..." I said musingly, and he flicked an annoyed glance at Walter, like he had given him away or something. "Flora, walk to the car please. We have something to talk about." Walter said firmly, and I shrugged and started walking. There was commotion, and a crowd, all gathered a few inches from our car, and I gulped, cautiously unsheathing the silver knife I had borrowed from the armory.
There seemed only one likely reason for people to be gathered here, by a vampire hunter's car, in the middle of the day. I edged forward, seeing that they were all hanging back. A man and a little girl were writhing together on the ground, and at first glance he seemed to be trying to help her. Then I saw her fearful face and the blood dripping from her neck. I inhaled and exhaled slowly, then jumped the vampire, aiming for his heart. This was my one and only shot until I lost the element of surprise, and I had to make it count. He snarled in surprise, letting go of the girl and bucking. I missed his heart, but the blade had sunk deep into his chest, and he was crumbling around it. I had to keep it there, and I had to stay on him as well, or I was dead. He writhed, and I clung to him as he banged me against the concrete, tasting blood in my mouth. He twisted, slamming me into the edged of our car, and my vision went spotty. Have to hand on. I thought as he did it again. Have to hang on until he doesn't move.
Alucard's POV:
"Alucard, don't tell me you're thinking about her the way I think you are." Walter said firmly, and I scowled. "No, I'm not. She means nothing to me. She just doesn't fume as nicely as Integra does." I said harshly, ignoring a pang in my chest. "I honestly don't believe you. You act around her in ways I've never seen you act before. You treat her nothing like anyone else I've seen. You listen to her music, talk to her, and you even were so bold as to tempt Integra's wrath and SLEEP with her." I growled. "She was just in my coffin." He sighed. "You are proving my point! How many careless maids have you nearly frightened to death just for almost TOUCHING the infernal thing, and you let this one human child sleep in it?" I sniffed. "Walter." He continued. "You can't deny that she is influencing you." I growled. "Walter! Something's wrong." He blinked. "What?" I turned. "I smell Flora's blood." He turned pale. "And to think I was so careless as to have the both of us leave her alone." he moaned as I started running. There was a crowd, a commotion, by our car and I roughly shoved the humans away, pulling out the Casull and letting fear of the huge gun clear the rest of the onlookers.
My heart clenched as I saw Flora rolling on the ground with a freak vampire, whimpering with fear and pain as he slammed her into the ground and sides of the car. Walter swore and launched his wires at them, holding the vampire down. I expected Flora to roll off, but instead she yanked what looked like a silver knife from the vampire's chest and stabbed him again, looking for his heart. She hissed, missing and trying again. I walked up to her and picked her up, lifting her off as I cradled her gently. "Hush now little huntress. Walter will take care of the rest." I murmured to her, pressing her close to my chest. She wheezed, whimpering and going limp in my arms as Walter questioned the vampire. I took the time to look her over. Her face was covered in blood from a nasty gnash on her temple, probably caused by slamming into the car, and her arms and legs were covered in bruises and scrapes. I rocked her gently as she slowly stopped moaning, and realized she had fallen unconscious. Walter walked over, opening the car door and getting in as I sat down in the backseat. He looked disapprovingly at Flora's body cradled in my arms, and I stared back at him, defiantly pulling her closer as if to say "mine". He sighed, shaking his head and started driving.
Flora whimpered, her fingers wrapping around my arm. "The...girl?" she asked weakly, looking frantic. I looked up. "There was a little girl, what happened to her?" I said, and Walter sighed. "Taken off by her parents. She should be fine." I crooned to Flora, rocking her. "She will be alright, my little huntress." She smiled weakly, curling up against me. Her hold on my arm relaxed, and her hand slid down to meet my mine. I curled my fingers around her own, feeling her heartbeat against my chest. It was weak and unsteady, not like the soothing throb that had so captivated me before. I frowned, moving my free hand over her heart and touching it gently. "Drive faster." I growled, feeling a trace of alarm. If the gnash on her forehead turned out to be a concussion..."Stay with me, little huntress." I whispered in her ear, squeezing her hand. She whimpered, and her fingers twitched, like she had tried to return the movement. I pressed my lips to her hair, inhaling her scent and she whined softly, nuzzling me. Walter glared at both of us. I paid no attention to him, all my focus on Flora as she slept against me.