The darkness that surrounded Seras was warm and comforting.

She felt like she was floating.

There was no more pain, no fear and she felt…at peace.

Is this dying?

Upon further thought, Seras came to the conclusion that she really didn't care.

She was technically already dead.

She wanted to stay here in this warm nothingness where she could justbeand not exist at the same time.

Relaxing further into this…whatever it was…Seras sighed so deeply she felt it with every fiber of her floating consciousness.

If this was indeed dying, there was not one feeling of fear or regret and Seras found herself actually welcoming it.

It was already dark, it was warm, she was alone, and she felt at peace.

What was she waiting for?

As she slowly felt herself fading away into the warm nothingness, Seras suddenly felt a powerful force wrap itself around her soul in the darkness.

Immediately she tried fighting against it but no matter what she tried, it just would not let her go.

You can't go into the Divide just yet Police Girl. I have need of you first.

Immediately Seras stopped fighting against this powerful force as she realized justwhoit was.

Master?She asked fearfully.How are you here?

She heard his insane laugh rumbling around her and Seras felt her soul tremble. What did he mean he had need of her? She had been dying quite comfortably when he had rudely interrupted…

Police Girl, you will not finish that thought. Now come back to me, your master, and wake up.

Seras felt a strange feeling as the powerful force surrounding her floating soul began to embrace her again but it was a hundred times more powerful.

Trying to fight against for a split second out of rebellion, she heard him growl in the darkness but it was when she felt his powerful grip surrounding her slowly turn from a fierce cold power to a warm embrace that caused her to stop abruptly.

Come back to me Seras Victoria…it is not time for a vampire to walk alone through the night….I am still your master and I command you wake up now.

Seras felt her soul melting into the overwhelming embrace. If she had eyes she knew they would be shutting for she had never felt so safe nor so comfortable.

She wished she could stay like this forever…but it wasn't meant to be.

A feeling of heaviness began to slowly creep through her as her soul began to go back into her body.

But master, it is so warm here…I don't think I want to…

Seras did not even get to finish her thought when his powerful voice suddenly bellowed everywhere.

WAKE UP POLICE GIRL!

Seras' eyes burst open and were instantly blinded by bright fluorescent lights shining above her face. Giving a small cry of pain and discomfort, she quickly shut them again and covered her eyelids with her hands.

"Oww…" she groaned, gently massaging her aching eyes through the thin layer of skin.

As she did this though, Seras came to realize that the discomfort and pain in her eyes was the only pain that she could actually feel at all. All she felt was extremely weak but apart from that too, she felt perfectly fine.

Very carefully she opened her eyes much more slowly to allow them to adjust to the bright lights, Seras managed to sit herself uprightly and had a look to see where she was.

The view was one she was not expecting.

She was on an operating table, surrounded by many machines that were beeping away loudly and was hidden away from the world behind a thin curtain that encircled the entire medical area in a large rectangle.

This was familiar to her.

Too familiar.

This was where Sir Integra had been brought and operated on when she had stabbed herself in the neck with the letter opener.

So why had she been brought here?

Wracking her memories, the last thing Seras was able to remember was being in the shower, collapsing from the pain she had been feeling and then…

Everything after that was a little bit fuzzy but there was a feeling deep in her stomach that nagged at her to try and remember. But the more she tried, the more she realized just how weak and tired her entire body felt. There was no way she would be able to remember whatever it was her body wanted her to remember.

Upon further inspection she found that, to her shock, that all of her bruises on her arms and legs had disappeared too. Her skin was left unmarred and had no visible injuries anymore. But to her slight horror she found herself wearing only a thin surgical gown that barely saved her modesty from flying out of the window.

There was a slight discomfort in her right hand and glancing down at it quickly, Seras saw that there was a drip inserted there.

It was not the drip that caught her eye though, but the dark red liquid that was making its way through the thin clear tube, through the needle and into her body.

Her eyes followed the thin tube upwards towards the stand it was connected to and her eyes bulged when she saw several medical blood packs all joined together.

So that's why I am healed up already…

Instinctively reaching down to remove the drip, just as her hand touched the small patch keeping it in place her hand suddenly halted.

Something was not quite right…

Sensing around the room with her mind, it took less than a second for Seras to feel the very powerful, and yet so familiar, presence on the edge of her mind.

Master.

A range of emotions hit her and Seras suddenly began to rush to carefully remove the plastic tape keeping the drip in. She needed to get it out now before her master would come and see her.

Get it out and then…

What? Hide? Prepare for punishment? Not allow him to see her weak like this when it was her own fault she had ended up in this mess?

Seras weakly stopped attacking the evil plastic tape that was refusing to come off as her thoughts finally caught up with what she was doing and justhowshe was acting.

With slight shame she realized she felt like the girl who was about to get her hand caught in the cookie jar when she could hear the parent's heavy footsteps coming down the hallway.

As she thought about it more, it occurred to her that it was a mixture of all of these thoughts and more. But the more she thought about it more, the more her vampire side kept on pushing through with overwhelming desires to just get out and see how far she could get before anyone could notice she had gone.

Especially him.

Giving in to her instincts Seras felt slight renewed strength ran through her and she placed her hand on the drip tube, ready to tear it out at any second.

Just as she was about to pull it out, a deep voice purred with disdain and slight interest in her mind.

And just what do you think you are doing Police Girl?

Seras jumped as she heard the words also bespokenout-loud.

Her head whipped around in the direction of the voice and Seras' eyes quickly locked with two deep, red, glowing, all too familiar eyes floating in the dark behind the transparent surgical screen.