Start Again 4

-Hey, Emily – Rez said, patting his new, white pillow. It was unusually stiff to him, he wasn't used to such a luxury in the orphanage. He was trying to make the pillow a bit more familiar, but it was useless. It was too well starched. - What's going to happen to us?

Hearing no response, he raised his head up from his job and saw the girl gazing out of the window. Cascada of blonde hair was falling on her shoulders and back. When Emily turned her head, light flashed in her glasses. Rez gulped feeling her cold sight on him.

-I don't really know, but I don't think we're going to be expelled from the orphanage – Emily ansewred, snorting. - Heard what miss Seras had said.

-Yes, but...

Rez opposed, but he couldn't find right words to say. He just glanced at the room around him. He was feeling a bit odd here; everything was unfamiliar again, but he felt some strange smell, which made him to be at ease. Were that stone walls? Wattle carpets? Hanging chandaliers? Or was that that annoying, really good starched pillow?

Rez couldn't tell anything, apart from that he'd rather stay with Emily. He didn't want to move.

-Maybe we'll have to do something to repay for broken window – Emily popped off of the windowsill. - I don't really know what to think of miss Seras. What do you think, Colin?

The asked boy picked his head up like a person just woken up from a nap. Colin had been sitting on the bed destined to be his, since they came into the room. He seemed like thinking about something intensively.

-Huh?

-I asked what you think of it – repeated annoyed Emily.

-Mmm... - Colin murmured, unexpectantly nervous and spaced out. - Well, she's nice...

-Yeah, Colin, we all know that, at last she founded the orphanage – Emily cut sceptically.

-She's rich... - Colin continued.

-As we can see.

-And she has a nice body.

One of servants of the Hellsing manor was passing the children's room when he heard a sound of slapping. His name was Oscar and he was a butler. But, of course, he wasn't any ordinary butler, no, he was a new generation one. Oscar was special, just like other servants of current Hellsing leader. He looked young, like a man in his early 30ths, tall and hefty. His face was decorated by a smart moustache and his eyes were watching the world with a bit of sly. It was said that he resembled an old Hellsing butler, Walter. But look was the only thing they had to had in common.

Oscar sniffed the air and pricked up his ears, searching for any dangers, but it seemed that the new children were only playing in the house he was in charge of. He really wondered why miss Seras had taken that noisy little humans into the house, even if they were living just on the outskirts of Hellsing's ground. The organization had enough troubles, even without children running round the manor and destroying everything on their way, the broken window was the best example.

Oscar was hoping to hear the answer soon, since miss Seras had called him. He knocked on her cabinet's door and after hearing a loud „please" he walked in. Miss Seras was gazing outside the window again; she seemed to do it often recently. She only glanced at him and then returned to her previous activity.

-Miss Seras – he bowed.

-What do you think of it, Oscar?

-Mistress, I'm truly apologetic, but I can't answer your question. I have no idea why you did bring those children here.

-You seriously don't think of one reason? - Seras finally faced her butler. He was surprised seeing a deep frown and pensive eyes.

-Well, yes, I can think of one. But I thought, that you wouldn't touch any children ever.

-OSCAR!

Seras' shout made him shiver and caused a pain in his neck. The room suddenly got darker, a few lightened lights switched off, the window got covered by something like a thin black membrane. It was a shadow, everything around was covered in shadow: glutinous, dense, diffuse. And greedy. It surrounded Oscar and pulled its hands towards him. Searching for his warmth, wanting him, desiring his blood.

When everything ended. Light came back on the right place, hands disappeared, the pane was clear. Oscar gulped, thinking of what might have happend to him if Miss Seras wasn't just Miss Seras – her anger ends as soon as it starts. But it can take really terrific forms.

-I'll show you something – Seras walked to her her desk like nothing at all had happend. She opened a drawer and took something out of it. - Why are you  still standing there? Come here quickly, we don't have a whole night.

Oscar put himself together and tried to walk on his stiff legs. His heart – human heart – was pounding like crazy after experiancing that amount of fear in only two or three seconds. When he leaned down to see that something. It was a photography; it looked old, just like every thing from Seras' private collection. It was showing a group of people, soldiers, as Oscar could tell, reminescenting History lessons about end of XX century. The photo was taken at night, probably on some training grounds. All people looked confident and relaxed. It seemed to be a photo of a good memorie.

-It's Wild Geese – Hellsing ruler explained. - And it's me.

She pointed exactly at the moment, when Oscar noticed her. There she was: grinning happily to the camera, standing with a gun and wearing a yellow uniform. Oscar had never seen his master with such a brave and clear look in her eyes. That's why he hadn't recognized her at first.

-And this is Captain Bernadotte. I was telling you about him.

-Yeah, Pip Bernadotte, I remember... - Oscar murmured, staring intesively at the man with amazingly long braid wreathed around his neck.

-He's French. He's impertinent. He has a braid. He has a broken nose. He's...

-Miss Seras, I'm sorry, but you could find five millions of people fitted to this description! -Oscar interupted seeing that the master was warming up in the counting. - What about the other two? Who are they?

Seras pointed at something behind Oscar. He followed her order and held his breath.

-No. You're not saying it's...

-Sir Integra. Last true ruler of Hellsing and Alucard, the most powerful vampire in the world's history.