AN: Content warning: Rape/incest is mentioned. I'm keeping the detail to a minimum.

Chapter 13

Seras looked at herself in the mirror, it had been charmed by Harry to allow her to see herself. She flattened down her dress, her hands working of their own accord. Makeup was not really a necessity for vampires, they are naturally designed to attract their pray, so in addition to the flawless skin and beautiful features, they also gave off pheromones that could draw a human in. Looking at herself up and down again, she determined that her appearance was impeccable except for one issue. Her eyes were bloodshot and the lids were red from having spent the last days crying.

It was cruel for this world to make her fall so deeply in love with someone so quickly with the man before viciously ripping him out of her life just as quickly. She knew life isn't fair, but still this was just rubbing salt in the wound, and now she had eternity to mourn him.

Alucard had been no help, he was hovering around aloof and completely uninterested in everything, and Integra had withdrawn into herself, exuding the cold, harsh exterior she had when the young vampire met her. Hermione had left, blaming her for the death of her best friend, the emotionless mask the witch had displayed while coldly informing her that she hated her would haunt her memory forever.

No, it wasn't fair at all. Not at all.

Seras squashed that line of thought as hard as she could, if she kept dwelling she'd end up crying again and she was sure there would be plenty of that to do throughout the rest of the day. She sighed, the dryness in her throat and ache in her belly were becoming harder to ignore, but she couldn't bring herself to feed on anyone else. The only blood that she wanted was Harry's and she'd never taste him again.

The ride to the cemetery was brutal. Nobody said a word, everyone was lost in their own thoughts. Seeing the Wild Geese wearing dress blues instead of their normal beat-up camouflage gear made the situation even more surreal. When they arrived, she was helped out of the car by Pip who guided her over to the grave where his coffin was positioned, ready to be lowered into the ground. Her heart lurched and she sobbed, unable to handle seeing his final resting place. It made it all too real. Harry was gone. Harry was dead.

Integra had insisted on a protestant ceremony with full military honors, despite Harry's agnosticism. Seras didn't think Harry would mind, he was always respectful of everyone's religion, even gifting Alexander Anderson, God's assassin, an ancient bible from his vaults. Speaking of the mad preacher, he stood in full priest regalia across from her on the other side of the Coffin, his sunglasses perched as always on his nose. His expression was solemn, and he remained silent for the duration of the service.

"Nooo!" Seras screamed, inconsolably crying as the casket slowly descended into the earth. She fell to her knees and wailed, her first true love was gone and this was simply the last confirmation of that. It was real. He was never coming back and she was doomed to an eternity alone. She heard Sir Integra's composure finally crack as the normally stern woman let out an ugly sob, Seras looked up and saw, of all people, Anderson was comforting her. She was in shock, so completely immersed in her sorrow that she barely felt the hand on her shoulder.

"Seras..." She heard a voice say.

"Just kill me. Let me die. Let me go with him." She cried, while sobbing. She heard a pained gasp.

"Come on Seras..." the voice said.

"No! I can't go on without him! PLEASE!" She wailed, ripping the pendant off her chest, tearing the top of her dress, exposing her unprotected chest to the sun. It burned, but Alucard's blood was too potent, it did nothing more than hurt. The hand on her shoulder squeezed hard.

"POLICE GIRL!" Integra shouted, and with a jerk Seras woke up, her eyes darting around, trying to map her surroundings.

"Sir Integra, what?" Seras asked, looking up into misty eyes of her employer.

"Seras, come on get up." She said, helping Seras to her feet. She looked down to see Harry laying there, unconscious but very much alive, attached to the vital sign monitoring equipment he was becoming so accustomed to.

"Oh Harry!" she cried, lunging at him, hold his unconscious form. Integra gave her a few minutes before calling her name again.

"Seras, it's going to be ok. Sit down. You fell asleep leaning against his bed." Integra explained.

"Sorry, Sir Integra. Are you ok? You're crying." Seras said.

"You were crying out in your sleep, begging us to let you die." She said. Seras gasped, and teared up again remembering the feeling of staring down the barrel of eternity alone.

"I'm so sorry." Seras said, burying her head in her hands.

"Tell me about it." Integra said, sitting in the chair beside her and taking her hand.

"Harry died. We were at his funeral, Hermione blamed me, I watched him... I-I watched..." Seras said, unable to continue.

"It's ok. It's going to be ok. He's doing fine, we're just waiting for him to wake up." Integra said.

"How's that possible though, I saw him get shot, his guts were coming out." Seras said. Integra grinned and walked over to Harry, pulling his blanket down to just below his navel. Seras was shocked, first at the impressive physique Harry had been hiding under his uniform, but also at the mostly healed bullet wound, barely visible against the normal tone of his skin.

"Did one their healers come?" Seras asked. Integra shook her head.

"We're still waiting to hear back from St. Mungo's, apparently Harry wasn't exaggerating about the state of things over there. No, this is mostly him. Our surgeons opened him up to survey the damage to his intestines, only to discover that they were perfectly intact and there were no signs of necrosis or infection, so they patched him up and this morning when they came for a bandage change, well he didn't need one." Integra explained.

Without thinking, Seras had reached out and was running her fingers along where the bullet hole had been, her wide eyes taking in every inch of his bare torso.

"Enjoying the free show?" Harry asked, causing them both to jump.

"Harry!" Seras yelled, leaping forward and into his arms, he held her while smiling widely. Meanwhile Integra stood behind her, fighting the blush that had arisen when she realized she'd been ogling him as well. As had become the custom every time Harry woke up in a hospital bed, he scooted over and Seras automatically climbed into bed with him. Integra smiled fondly down at them.

"Sorry I left you on the roof, Integra." Harry said. Integra waved it off.

"I'd have been upset but I had neither my guns nor my saber, I would have been of no use whatsoever down there." Integra explained. Harry nodded. His expression dimmed.

"How many did we lose?" Harry asked.

"Five regulars, and three Geese." Integra said.

"Damn..." Harry said, followed by "How's Alucard?"

"Enraged. He's been pouring through your godfather's library looking for the seal that trapped him, and how to counter it." Integra said.

"Uh, really all he would need is a couple of frag grenades." Harry said. Integra gave him an incredulous look.

"Explain." She said.

"The seal was stopping him because it's designed to contain vampires. Rune traps only last as long as the surface they're carved on. While the rock could have contained him for thousands of years, as soon as any damage is done to the runic array the jig is up. Drop a couple frag grenades, wait for them to explode, reconstitute his body and boom he's free." Harry said. Integra looked pensive.

"We'll tell him when he comes back. I'm kind of enjoying the peace and quiet." Integra said, causing the other two to laugh.

Alucard did return three days later with a stack of parchments comprising the notes he'd taken during his frantic research, only for Integra to take them, place them on her desk and then hand him three fragmentation grenades. He growled, immediately understanding the simplicity of the solution, and enraged that he'd wasted three days reading through ancient dark magical tomes. Unfortunately for everyone else, disabling vampire containment arrays was far from the only thing he learned.

Sooner than Seras would have liked, she was boarding a flight to Rio. Well, boarding was generous. She was being loaded in her coffin, with a few kilograms of dirt from Leeds under the lining, into the cargo hold while Alucard rode in style as a passenger of the posh private jet. The claustrophobia didn't much bother her though, she was able to pass the time by speaking to Harry via a new set of linked mirrors Sirius and Remus had made for them.

Harry on the other hand was stuck jumping out of a helicopter just over the German border with Pip and a few of the Wild Geese because Hellsing was forbidden to operate in France without approval from the French parliament. Under cover of night they crossed the border on foot, and found their way to Strasbourg, checking into a hotel under assumed names.

"How's the flight?" Harry asked the mirror.

"It's hot in here." Seras said, she had stripped down to a tank top and her panties, and still was sweating profusely. Harry was very appreciative of the view, and repeatedly had to be reminded that Seras had eyes too. She would be lying to herself if she said she didn't love it.

"Well hopefully we'll both be done soon. You got enough blood?" Harry asked. Seras nodded, shaking a newly emptied flask in front of the mirror.

"Good. I really want you to be careful out there. We know millennium has a lot of vampires in their ranks." Harry said.

"I'm more worried about you, Harry. I have Alucard. Pip and the geese are amazing, but truthfully if you do run into trouble it'll probably be you saving them." Seras observed.

"I doubt we're in too much danger. Our target is only accompanied by two people, they are trying to keep a low profile." Harry explained, then yawned.

"I'm glad. You go to sleep, we'll talk in the morning." Seras said. Harry pouted but agreed.

"Seras, It's stupid, we were just together a few hours a go, but I miss you." Harry said

"It's not stupid Harry, I miss you too." She said, longing in her voice. Harry's eyes had slowly drifted down while she said it.

"Harry? You ok there?" Seras asked.

"What? Sorry, I was looking at your boobs again." Harry said, grinning.

"Go to sleep!" Seras said.

"I love you." Harry said.

"I love you too." Seras said, pressing the rune on the bottom that shut the mirror down. She giggled at how her heart still leapt when he said that to her. She felt like a little girl, infatuated with the boy next door. When she awoke the first day after being turned, she had convinced herself that life as she knew it was over, that she was beholden to Alucard and had no future beyond doing his bidding. The fledgling bond is like that, it's a far weaker version of the control vampires have over their ghouls. She felt a connection to Alucard, and if he told her to do something she felt compelled to obey. She could disobey, but it was extremely difficult, even painful if he is insistent about it. She considered herself fortunate then that her master was so busy being a lunatic he never bothered ordering her around.

Now however, it was different. She still felt connected to her sire, but her love of Harry tempered Alucard's control over her. Truth be told Alucard was pleased with this. His previous thralls had taken decades to grow apart from him, Seras was on track to break the bond within a year.

Seras sighed and closed her eyes, and fell asleep inside her box thinking about the man she loved.

Harry too was asleep, but unlike Seras his dreams were far from pleasant. At first he watched Sirius falling through the veil, only for it to dissolve into his most hated recurring nightmare. He was face down, his head being shoved into a mattress while he lay helpless underneath his uncle. His face was fixed in a practiced mask of indifference, while inside he was screaming in pain and humiliation.

He waited, unable to fight back, begging whatever force might be listening to end this horror, but as always, nobody listened.

"Please! Anyone, Help!" His childish voice screamed inside his mind, and instead of the harsh, cruel silence that normally served as a response to his pleas, a warm hand took his. He looked up and into a pair of shining red eyes, and a kind smile. Instantly his uncle disappeared, he was clothed, and all of the pain had vanished. He rubbed the tears out of his eyes, and looked again at his savior, she was a pretty blonde lady with weird red eyes and a kind smile, who sat there with her arms open, inviting him in for a hug. He leapt at her, and buried his face in her chest, crying his eyes out, purging years of torment and humiliation. She hummed a tune he didn't recognize and rubbed his back, soothing him, and his sobbing subsided, and he just sat with her, feeling content and safe.

Harry's eyes opened slowly and he realized he'd been crying. He didn't remember much about his dream, just that he felt warm, and safe and loved. He heard a pounding on his door, and a thick french accent yelling "Wake up magic man, it is time to go!"

"Yeah yeah keep your pants on, Pip." Harry shouted.

"You Hellsings don't pay me enough to get zem off in the first place!" Pip retorted and laughed as he walked away.

Harry was dressed and equipped within minutes, and met the Wild Geese out in the lobby. They were eating energy bars and drinking bottled water, since they didn't want to stay long enough to eat a proper breakfast. The plan was to visit with the contact, gauge her trustworthiness, and if she passed muster, give her a linked journal, the other half was sitting on Integra's desk that would allow the contact to give reports on important intelligence.

"So what are we expecting?" Harry asked, shouldering his bag.

"My information says she's extremely tall, very muscular, short red hair, ugly as sin, so very much like Pierre's muzzer." Pip said, gesturing at the mercenary standing next to him.

"Va te faire Foutre." Pierre said, with an obscene gesture directed at Pip.

"Ok, so let's go over the plan. We make our way to the warehouse down town, Pip and I walk in and make the contact, deliver the journal, and take any intel she has to offer now, and then we withdraw and head back to England." Harry said. The Geese confirmed and they headed out on foot.

It was not a very long walk, their equipment was stashed in civilian-grade backpacks which made them all look like obnoxious tourists, which is definitely what they were going for. The only people who would go out of their way to bother them would be people selling things, and Harry was very good at telling merchants to fuck off.

They arrived at the warehouse, which looked like it was abandoned some time around the Napoleonic wars, and knocked on the door. A short man in old style slacks, suspenders, a dress shirt and bowtie answered the door and ushered them in. He very much looked like someone in the '40s trying to blend in.

When his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he scanned the room and saw crates of supplies being hefted effortlessly by a vampire and stacked near the freight door at the back, and on the other end Harry saw what he presumed was the target. She stood, her arms crossed, leaning against a back wall, half of her body covered in strange tattoos and for some reason there was a comically big scythe leaning against the wall next to her.

"I thought you said she was supposed to be ugly." Harry said, quietly.

"Are we looking at ze same woman?" Pip asked.

"Tall lady in the back with the tattoos?" Harry said

"Oui. Zat's her. You think she's attractive?" Pip asked. Harry shrugged.

"I mean she's no Seras, but I think she's beautiful." Harry responded, and then noticed the woman's shocked expression.

"Oh shit. Vampire hearing." Harry said. This caused her to smirk, but he still noticed the slight blush on the non-tattooed side of her face. She approached, and reached a hand out.

"Zorin Blitz." She said in a light German accent.

"I'm Harry Potter, this is Pip Bernadotte." Harry said, gesturing at the frenchman, then shook her hand.

"So you're the one that reached out to me. Bold, if I do say so myself." Zorin said to Pip. He shrugged and grinned.

"À vaincre sans péril, on triomphe sans gloire. " Pip said

"If what we think we know about you is true, then I can't help but feel we are on the same side." Harry said.

"And what is is it that you think you know about me?" Zorin asked.

"That you are a strong-willed fighter who has been playing the long game since the mid '40s, and that you seek to avenge your people who suffered and died for a madman's ambition." Harry said Zorin nodded slowly.

"You are well informed." She said, gesturing to the side where several folding chairs were placed around a table. Harry noticed that as she pulled her chair underneath her, her hand was shaking badly.

"You ok?" Harry asked, gesturing at her hand. She looked down and grimaced.

"Our delivery was three days late, and I am out of 'rations'" Zorin said, adding the air quotes where appropriate. Harry nodded and pulled out his holly wand, placing it on the table, then reached into his coat, withdrawing a flask and a dagger. He gestured to his wand.

"Are you aware of my people's secret?" Harry asked. She nodded.

"You are a wizard?" Zorin asked. Harry nodded, using the dagger to puncture the brachial artery in his left arm then positioned the flask underneath it, filling it. He handed it to Zorin who accepted it gratefully and downed it quickly. She shuddered and smiled, looking off into the middle distance.

"I have heard about the effects of wizard blood. It's quite pleasant." Zorin said.

"So I'm told. Let me know when you've centered yourself." Harry said. Zorin leaned back in her chair and smiled genuinely, before shaking her head and sitting up.

"Yes. Sorry about that, and Thank you." Zorin said.

"No problem. Nobody should be expected to negotiate on an empty stomach." Harry said, grinning.

"I'm going out to smoke, is zat ok?" Pip asked. Harry nodded and he got up and left. Zorin looked over at harry, and looked sheepish.

"Thank you also for the complement. It has been very long since I heard a man call me beautiful." Zorin said.

"Oh yeah, sorry bout that, it was kind of rude to talk about you like that." Harry said, grinning. He produced another flask and began filling it with more of his blood.

"It was worth it. So what would the Hellsing organization be willing to offer in exchange for my services?" Zorin asked.

"Immunity, for starters. Hellsing has a 'Kill on sight' Order for all vampires except those registered with the Ministry of Magic, Alucard himself and his fledgling who is my girlfriend, Seras Victoria. If we come to an agreement, you would also be included on that list." He explained, taking his wand off the table and healing the cut in his wrist. With his wand, he cast a few charms on the flask and handed it to Zorin.

"That has a stasis charm on it, it will remain warm and fresh indefinitely. Just be sure to completely destroy the flask when you're done. I can get in a lot of trouble with my people for handing out charmed items like that." Harry said, smiling mischievously.

"Again, thank you." Zorin said.

"Also, and this is definitely not contingent on the agreement, my personal promise to annihilate each and every one of those nazi fuckers with extreme prejudice." Harry said.

"That in and of itself is worth it." Zorin said with a savage grin.

"Another thing, we captured Jan Valentine and were able to study the freak chip on the back of his head. Our tech guys came up with this little gadget." Harry said, reaching into his jacket, producing a box full of thin plastic adhesive discs embedded with circuitry. Harry noticed one of Zorin's colleagues walking outdoors towards where Pip was smoking.

"What do these do?" Zorin asked.

"That chip on the back of your head is transmitting telemetry and can be used to control your actions from within a hundred kilometers of wherever their headquarters is. These will block incoming transmissions while still allowing telemetry data to pass through." Harry said. Zorin's eyes popped open in surprise.

"Why not block the Telemetry too?" Zorin asked.

"If we do that, you'll randomly disappear from their radar, your absence from their trackers would be suspicious." Harry said. Zorin nodded.

"Why more than one?" Zorin asked.

"In case you lose them or they get damaged. The box is charmed, every time you remove one, it is replaced with a duplicate. You can also hand them out to other like-minded individuals, if there are any others that wish to defect" Harry said.

"I can say with certainty there is one, and I have a good feeling about another. I will pursue this and report back. I am definitely interested in working with you." Zorin said.

"Excellent, then take this." Harry said, reaching into his coat and withdrawing a wrapped parcel.

"How do you keep so much in there?" Zorin asked, chuckling.

"I've got all the pockets." Harry said, smiling. She opened the package and saw a journal.

"That is charmed to link with a copy sitting on Sir Integra's desk. Anything you wish to report you can simply write in there, and we'll see it immediately." Harry explained.

"Excellent, this will help me keep a lower profile, than having to sneak out and leave dead drops." Zorin responded.

"So, may I ask something personal?" Harry asked.

"Sure, though I may not wish to answer." Zorin said.

"The intelligence we gathered, it said you have been working against millennium since the beginning, and before them the nazis in general. Is it true you are Jewish and escaped detection?" Harry asked. Zorin's expression fell.

"Yes. When those pigs came and took my family, I was hiding like a coward under the floorboards and they never found me." Zorin said, looking ashamed.

"I hid behind a wall and watched a man who spent my whole life protecting me from behind the scenes get murdered by an evil wizard when I was 17, Zorin. Doing what is necessary doesn't make you a coward." Harry said. She smiled gratefully.

"I was 16 when my family was taken. I lived under an assumed name for two years until I discovered Millennium and joined up. When the Russians took Berlin and we fled in our airships, I wept in joy." Zorin said.

"Why didn't you go home then?" Harry asked.

"I joined and trained with the SS, and wore their uniform. Nobody would have believed I was working agaisnt them." Zorin explained.

"Besides, as long as these swine draw breath my job is not finished." Zorin said. Harry saw out of the corner of his eye the other vampire was doing a poor job of hiding the fact that he was eavesdropping. Harry took the journal and picked up a ballpoint pen from the table, and wrote in it while talking.

"I think we are definitely going to be of great assistance to each other. Do you have a relaible way of escaping if you're discovered?" Harry asked.

"Yes, there is the..." Zorin said, but harry interrupted her.

"Hey look at this for a second." Harry said, passing her the journal. She read it

Are your companions important to you?

She took the pen and began writing.

"Well let's just say there are ways." Zorin said passing the book back.

No, they are nazi pigs, why?

"Good, I'm reluctant to put anyone in harm's way." Harry said, passing the book back.

The one still in here with us has been listening in the whole time and taking notes. I am going to eliminate them. Be prepared.

Zorin cursed under her breath and nodded to Harry. Harry stood and stretched, stealthily withdrawing the elder wand in the process.

"Hey buddy, what's your name?" Harry asked, approaching the other nazi.

"Ich spreche Kein Englisch" He responded.

"Oh, Entschuldigung. Wie heißt du?" Harry asked.

"Hans. Du?" He asked

"Ich heiße Avada Kedavra" Harry said, instantly dropping the treacherous Nazi.

"Hey Pip, Offer that fine gentleman a smoke." Harry yelled. They heard a pop followed by the sound of a body dropping to the ground. Immediately after, Pip walked in with the other two Wild Geese.

"Today's been a success. Liuetnant Blitz has agreed to our term, and has accepted our gifts." Harry said.

"Good, I'm glad. We're going to head back to ze hotel and prepare to leave, ze Helicopter will meet us over ze border in about two hours." Pip said, Harry Nodded. He looked over at Zorin, looking directly into her eyes.

"At the first sign of trouble, I want you to get out of there and tell us where we can pick you up on the journal. I hate the idea of endangering you, but without more information we are flying blind against Millennium." Harry said.

"I appreciate it, and thank you for helping me with my mission. If you don't mind, there is one more thing." She said with a sheepish expresion.

"Name it." Harry said.

"Can you... say it again? Please?" She asked, her eyes sad. Harry took her hands in his and looked her in the eye.

"You are Beautiful Zorin, anyone who says differently is a blind fool." Harry said, giving her one of his weapons-grade crooked grins. She smiled and let out a choked sob, a tear tracked its way down her cheek.

"Thank you Harry. Forgive my vanity, it's just been so long." She said. Harry smiled and grasped her shoulder.

"I'm not lying. You should find someone that tells you that every day." He said, she nodded and smiled.