Hellsing - Blood Heritage

Wow. Okay, I have no good excuse for how long it took to write this. Let's just say that I've had a bunch of crap (i.e. crazy chemistry, multiple research papers, new boyfriend, etc) happening and leave it at that. I hope this doesn't happen again, but I don't think I can give a guarantee of that at the moment. Life is crazy. What else can I say?

My beta is currently extremely busy herself, so she has not had time to read over this. But I know I've been WAAAYYY overdue for an update, so I'm not going to to force you guys to wait any longer. If you see any glaring mistakes, feel free to point them out, and I'll go back and fix them.


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The air of the hotel room smelled strongly of the aroma of cigarettes and freshly brewed coffee. Though it was almost five in the morning, no gentle transition to the approaching sunrise could be seen. The streetlights of the Holy City stripped that particular pleasure away from anyone who may have wished to witness it.

The day's meetings, while somewhat productive, had been long and draining. Integra and her two companions were exhausted, but none of them dared to sleep. Negotiations had been made, a workable 'peace treaty' drawn up, and documents exchanged for assurances of cooperation. Enrico Maxwell now had in his possession the names of the clergy members who had worked with the Germans. The names that Hellsing had gone to so much trouble to retrieve for this express purpose. And the leader of Iscariot was intent upon 'clensing' the church now that he knew precisely who to go after.

The female knight wasn't particularly worried about Iscariot attempting something foolish. After the little squabble between Syn and Yumie two nights ago, the priests knew better. But she couldn't account for the actions of the Vatican officials whose death warrants she had just signed. If any of them were lucky enough to discover what was happening before being taken into custody, they might attempt to flee. Or they might try to stamp out the ones who had given them away. The Hellsing members weren't slated to leave until later in the morning, and neither Syn nor Pip were willing to let their guards down enough to sleep.

Integra could hear the two of them bickering from her bedroom. From the snippets of conversation she caught, she gathered that Pip was trying to teach Syn how to play poker, and the red-head was awful at it. The knight padded over to the door and pushed it until it was almost closed. A two inch wide gap between it and the doorframe was enough for them to know all was well in her section of the rooms, while filtering out most of the noise from their side. She settled herself back down on the bed and readjusted the cell-phone she had placed on speaker for the sake of convenience.

"Iscariot agreed to a truce?" Edmund's voice questioned.

Integra slipped out of her shoes, then began running a brush through her hair. It had somehow wound up getting quite tangled throughout the day.

"I wouldn't go so far as to call it a truce." She informed him. "But they will offer assistance in our investigation."

It had almost been more trouble than it was worth, she considered. Maxwell was deadset on the Vatican gaining access to Britian for their operations. Integra would be damned if she was going to let the Catholics have full reign on Protestant lands on her watch. It was that very subject that had kept negotiations running for so damn long.

Edmund hummed thoughtfully on his end of the line. "What are they doing now?"

"Maxwell took the names we brought and said he would look into it." the knight replied. "I imagine he's conducting a full inquisition as we speak."

Integra heard his nervous intake of breath and knew he understood her meaning. The clergy who had collaborated with the Germans wouldn't simply been hunted down and shot. Maxwell's people would have them tortured until they revealed every scrap of information they knew.

"Are you in a secure location?" He asked then, a subtle note of worry in his voice.

Integra quirked a brow. Was Edmund actually 'concerned' about her? She wasn't accustomed to people worrying about her well being. At least not so openly.

"As secure as we can manage, given the circumstances." she said. "We keep a 24 hour watch, Syn has put wards on the rooms, and she has that spirit of hers keeping an eye on the people here..." she paused briefly, wondering why she felt the need to tell him about all the security measures. "If anyone is foolish enough to attack us, we'll know well before hand. There is no need for you to worry."

Edmund made a sound of protest. "Integra, I'm a man and you're in the middle of hostile territory. It's my job to be worried."

Integra's ears picked up something in the background that sounded suspiciously like Alucard's chuckle. She instinctively reached for her box of cigars.

"I thought I gave very clear instructions that Alucard was to remain in the basement while I was gone." she said in irritation.

"Hmm? Oh! Dont worry, your vampire hasn't broken any rules. He's been in the sublevels the whole time."

The knight frowned as she flicked her lighter. If Alucard was where he was supposed to be, then that meant Edmund was down there too. She wasn't sure how to take that bit of information.

"What are you doing in my basement, Edmund Striker?"

The infernal man didn't answer. Instead, he said, "You should consider putting better lighting down here, Integra. It's hard to do much of anything with it being so dim..."

"Edmund..." she began, clamping her teeth down on the end of her cigar. "Why are you in my basement, and why is Alucard with you?"

"I'm keeping him company." he replied in an innocent tone. "Just having a friendly chit chat. You never told me how good he is at chess..."

Integra stared at the phone, wondering if this was some sort of joke. Edmund and Alucard were in the same room, and they hadn't tried to kill each other yet? That thought was more than a little unnerving.

"Are you up to something?" she asked, narrowing her eyes in suspicion.

Edmund made a faux sound of shock. "Me? Why would you think that?"

The knight took a long drag of her cigar, letting the smoke fill her lungs. "If you are up to no good, I will find out about it, and I will put a stop to it. Do you understand me?"

Her tone was icy, but Ed just chuckled. "It was a joke, Integra. Lighten up a little." He took a moment to clear his throat. "I'm actually working on something, and I needed Alucard's help."

"What on earth are you doing that you need my vampire's help with?" she demanded.

"It's an idea I've been playing around with involving blood seals. It's been a while since I've used this type of magic, so I needed a vampire to test it out on. And since you just happen to have a very powerful one living in your basement, I figured I would put him to good use."

Integra thought that sounded sensible. But with Alucard the way he was, she had a hard time believing that he was nicely going along with it.

"How did you convince him to do this?"

Ed laughed good naturedly. "I can be very persuasive when I want to be." There was a short pause, and then, "I'll show you when you get back."

Integra's eyes widened in shock. "Excuse me?!"

"... the seals." he replied. He sounded like he was perplexed by her sudden change of mood. "If you're interested, of course."

Her tension eased somewhat. "Oh." she said, realizing she had misunderstood him. "The seals... Yes, that would be fine."

She hazarded a glance at herself in the mirror and frowned at the pink tinge on her cheeks. Why the bloody hell was she getting so flustered over an innocent comment? She decided right then that she had been around Alucard far too long. She was starting to read into people's words too much.

Edmund's end of the line was silent for a long moment. Finally, she heard a sound, like he was shifting the phone away from his shoulder.

"I could show you what I mean about being persuasive as well." he teased in a voice that was playfully coy. "If you like..."

The pink tinge on her cheeks flared up into a bright red at the statement. Integra snatched up the phone and held it mere inches away from her face.

"You will do no such thing, you bloody pervert!" she shouted. She disconnected the line with a huff, then snapped the phone shut.

She made a mental note to keep Alucard and Edmund apart in the future. The last thing she needed was for the bloody vampire's bad habits to rub off on him.

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Syn and Pip both looked up from their cards at Integra's shout.

"What zhe 'ell...?" he began.

Syn glanced at the door to Integra's room. "Alucard must have said something stupid again." she muttered.

The captain looked bewildered a moment, then his good eye lit up with understanding. "Zhat vampire of yours must be a glutton for punishment if 'e likes torturing zhe boss like zhat."

The red-head blinked. She had heard Alucard called many things, but 'her' vampire was never one of them.

"You have no idea, Captain." she said, turning her attention back to her cards. "And Alucard is Sir Integra's vampire, not mine."

Pip made a thoughtful hum, then set aside two cards and drew to replace them. Syn honestly didn't know what to do with the mess she had been dealt. She had thought that learning poker would be a fun way to pass the time. Unfortunately for her, she was horrible at it - and an eight game losing streak tended to put a damper on one's enthusiasm. After running all available options through her mind, she settled on getting rid of three of her cards.

"A vampire's power depends on zhe one zhat made zhem, oui?" Pip asked suddenly.

Syn's hand paused over the deck in the middle of the table. Her brain snapped of out the tired haze that had begun to cloud over her mind, and for the first time that night, she wasn't paying her full attention to the game. Bernadette had been asking a lot of questions about vampires lately. They were usually mundane or trivial things - things that weren't covered in their lessons because Sir Integra and Walter had thought that soldiers didn't need to know, or wouldn't be interested in knowing about them.

"There are other factors involved... but that is true for the most part." she replied.

Bernadette tapped his chin. "Zo... zince Alucard waz zhe one who made 'er, Seras should be very powerful..."

He had been doing that a lot too - asking tons of questions about Seras. It was like he found the draculina to be the most fascinating thing he had ever encountered. What did she like? What did she hate? Why does she do this? What makes her act like that? The only reason that Syn knew the answers to any of these questions was because there were only two women for Seras to really talk to. And Sir Integra was not the type to indulge in 'girl time' no matter how good a mood she was in. The gunsmith was of the opinion that if he was so interested in the girl, he should ask her about those things himself - she had come right out and told him so. But she had a suspicion that his interest stemmed from something more serious that mere fascination. And since she was 'involved' (for lack of a better word) with a vampire herself, she felt the need to impart some bits of wisdom she had gained from experience. Not that Seras and Alucard were alike in any respect other than they both had fangs and slept during the day - but a vampire was a vampire, and they did share some common characteristics...

"She should be." the red-head agreed with a nod. "But Seras is still young, and she has difficulty controlling her powers."

"Because she doesn't drink blood?"

Syn looked over the tops of her cards and quirked a brow. Pip caught the look and waved his hands at her.

"I waz just wondering why she does zhat, iz all." he explained. "If vampires need blood to zurvive, zhen she must 'ate being one zince she wont drink..."

She thought about that. Though she had never heard Seras mention anything about it specifically, she didn't believe the girl hated being a vampire. She had displayed a willingness to go to Alucard for lessons, after all. Syn had only been present for one of them, but the draculina seemed more than eager to submit to her master's teachings about how to use her abilities. The only thing the girl hated outright was the idea of drinking the blood she was given.

"I think it's the idea of being a predator that bothers her the most." the red-head said after her thoughtful pause. "Vampires are designed by nature to kill to survive. But Seras..."

Pip frowned at his cards. "I zhought 'ellsing's vampires drank medical blood."

"They do." she confirmed. "But Seras has a problem with drinking blood that was donated for a medical purpose. She thinks that if it was donated to save someone's life, then she has no business drinking it."

A thoughtful expression passed over the captain's features, and Syn found herself keeping an eye on him while pretending to examine her hand. She was paying very little attention to the game anymore. She was too busy trying to figure out what was going through his mind. She could practically see the gears in his head turning, attempting to crank out a solution to some unspoken problem.

Suddenly, Bernadette shook his head and the expression disappeared. He laid his cards out on the table, then shot an expectant look in her direction. The bastard had four queens and an ace. Damn he's good... Syn mused internally. She had nothing in her hand but a huge mess. She put down her cards in defeat, then shot a dirty look across the table.

"I still say you're a filthy cheat." she crossed her arms over her chest, indignant. "Aren't I supposed to have beginner's luck or something?"

Pip actually had the gall to laugh at her. "Not even beginner's luck could zave your zorry arse, zweetheart."

Syn let out an unladylike snort and pushed her cards at him. Pip picked them up with a chuckle and began shuffling the deck. Technically, it was her turn to shuffle, but she was hopeless at that as well. The first and only time she made an attempt, cards had gone flying around the room. It had taken an embarrissingly long time to recover them all. Pip made the comment that if she ever set foot inside a gambling hall, she would immediately be thrown out for cheating. No one would ever that someone could be that much of a klutz with cards and it not be intentional.

She waited until all the cards were dealt before daring to touch them. The red-head knew that some card players believed that things like that were bad luck. Although she didn't prescribe to that particular superstition, she was willing to take a little good luck from any source she could find. When she picked them up to arrange them in her palm, she thought that perhaps it had worked. She had been dealt a run of hearts. If she managed to draw a five or a ten of the same suit, she had a pretty good chance of winning this round. Upon tossing away the unneeded card and drawing to replace it, Syn had to beat down the urge to beam with happiness. She waited for Pip to discard and draw, then laid out her cards with a smile.

"How's that for having a sorry arse?!" she demanded with a broad grin on her face.

The captain examined her hand, then let out a low whistle. "Not bad. Not bad at all. I might make a poker player of you yet."

The redhead felt a rush of satisfaction run through her at the statement. She had finally managed to win a game. She was entertaining the idea of getting up and jumping for joy, when she noticed Pip's face. He didn't look the least bit upset about losing. As a matter of fact, he looked downright amused - like he knew something she didn't.

Syn's face fell. "Oh no... Hell no. Don't you DARE do this to me Bernadette!!"

He gave her a mischevious smile and finally laid down his cards. A royal flush - in spades. She could have killed him.

"Never assume you've won until all zhe cards are on zhe table." he told her, giving her a smile that made her want to slap the hell out of him.

Syn stared at the cards for a long moment, then took a deep breath to calm her temper. She hated losing. Especially losing this many times in a row.

"You are an evil bastard, you know that?" she said, almost venemously.

Pip grinned, trying to look innocent and failing miserably. "Do you want me to put zhem away?" he offered.

She made a face and pushed the cards to his side of the table again. "Shut up and shuffle the damn things." she said with a huff. "I'm going to win at least one game before I give up."

He shrugged. " 'ave eet your way."

While he worked his magic on the deck - which may or may not have included setting it in his favor, she thought negatively - Syn ran all her options through her head. There was no need to get so worked up over this. It was just a game. Winning was just a matter of figuring out which odds to play towards. She just needed to pay closer attention, plan her moves more carefully, then perhaps she could...

"Does Alucard being Seras' master make 'im like a fazher to 'er?"

Syn blinked, then stared at Bernadette in shock. 'What the hell?' she wondered. 'Where did THAT come from??'

"Um... well..." she paused, thinking of the right words for what she wanted to say. "I suppose you could say that..."

Pip hummed thoughtfully. "Hmm... well, if Alucard's 'er dad, does zhat make you 'er mom? Because zhat would mean you were..." he paused to count on his fingers. "Two or zhree when you first... OW!"

Syn kicked him in the shin before he could finish. "Deal the cards and shut the hell up, Captain."

Pip winced. "Yes ma'am."

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I apologize if it's terrible. I've been suffering through a pretty bad case of writers block, and I haven't been able to work on much of anything. Thankfully though, it seems to be residing, so I should get my update schedule back on track soon. :)

Review! ...please?