The Catholic Princess

Section Seven: Friends In Odd Places

Sunday, November 24, 2012- Hellsing Manor, London, England.

~Skye~

I had gotten special permission from Dad to go visit Hellsing Manor after morning mass, and since he was leaving for a mission in Germany, he'd be gone for a few days. I wasn't too worried about it, but at the same time, I knew that Alucard lived with her. Dad had told me I was safe, that Alucard had been given orders to leave me be, but I doubted that the beast would listen. I parked my car in the driveway, locking it since it held Iscariot paperwork. I was having tea with Integra, and I was also helping her organize her filing system, because apparently, it was in shambles. I was more than willing to help, and honestly, I could use a friend, given I had none thanks to living my whole life at the orphanage. I knock on the door, and her butler, I think his name was Walter from what she told me, opened it. 

" Hi, my name is Skye Anderson. Sir Integra is expecting me?" 

" Ah, yes. Follow me Miss." 

I followed the butler, and he lead me into the manor, and it was by far the prettiest place I had seen outside of the art gallery. 

" She has one beautiful home." 

" This has been the Hellsing Estate since Professor Abraham Van Hellsing moved here from Wales to serve Her Majesty." 

" Amazing. I lived my whole life at the orphanage that I was adopted out of."

" Sir Integra told me you were adopted by Father Anderson. What's that like?" 

" Oh, I love Dad, even when he's being overly cautious. I know his job is dangerous and I know that he has worries, like any father, but he also knows I'm an adult now. He trusts me to make good judgement calls." 

" Well, being the top field agent at Iscariot does come with it's own risks." 

" I know. I remember Dad coming home one night, and he hadn't fully healed. I gave him a right ear chewing for tracking blood on the carpets as I patched him up." 

" You have no idea how much that statement resonates with me. Living with a vampire and several soldiers, you can imagine the messes I've had to clean up over the years."

" What is it like living with said vampire?" 

" He's very isolate, rarely seen outside of his basement dwelling. He doesn't care much for most here, and occasionally he'll send his familiar to fetch him food or a novel for him to read. I've known Alucard since the second world war, and I can tell you, once you've been let in behind the mask he wears, you see the real man beneath the beast."

" Dad told me he had a talk with him, and that he learned to have more respect for his rival, as he put it. I think old age is making my father soft, but you didn't hear me say that." 

The butler chuckled as we rounded one last corner, and a knock resounded in the sparse hall as he rapped on a massive pair of wooden doors. We walked in, and Sir Integra looked happy to see me.

" Oh, wonderful! I was starting to wonder if you were going to show! Walter, please bring us a pot of chamomile tea."

" Of course, Sir." 

" Come on in and sit down. How was the drive here?"

" Very beautiful. I don't get out much, so when I do, I take full advantage." 

" So, I was wondering, and you can tell me no, how is it you came to be adopted by Father Anderson of all people?" 

I sat down in the chair provided, and let out a small sigh.

" When I was 6, my parents died in a car crash due to rainy weather. I don't really remember them, I was so young, so I don't really feel a connection to them like I do with Dad. I do, however, remember a few months later, Dad coming out to the play yard, and calling me over, showing me the filled out and finalized adoption form, even changing my name so I'd have a fresh start. Maxwell himself signed and stamped it. I was so happy. I was very close to Dad, mostly because he was the one to really show me around and helped me out the most. I love Dad with all my heart. He's always been there for me. I couldn't have asked for a better father." 

" I'm sorry to hear about your parents. I never knew my mother, and my father passed on when I was 12. My uncle was so bitter about how I had gotten the company, that it lead to me to freeing Alucard and having to kill my uncle, due to the fact he was trying to kill me." 

" That's horrible! I couldn't ever imagine Dad ever trying to hurt me!"

" I'm over it by now, having run this company since I was 12, I'd like to think I have this place pretty well organized and cared for, for the most part." 

" How is it dealing with Alucard?" 

" Oh, he's harmless to me. He teases me, mostly to get an angry reaction, but he is a very dear friend to me. I've come to respect and love the vampire as if he were family, like an estranged wine uncle or caretaker." 

" Really? I've run into him three times to memory, and every time, I couldn't help but be afraid and hostile. His eyes are just so intense and hollow, it scared the Jesus into me!" 

" Believe it or not, there is a gentleman beneath the beastly exterior. If he likes you, good luck getting him to leave you alone. He's like a dog in that aspect, deeply loyal and protective. All in all, he really isn't that bad an entity once you get to know him." 

" I was always told by Dad that he was the devil incarnate, to never be alone with him."

" That sounds like a overprotective catholic father if I ever heard one. Alucard loves children, and as for women, he rarely acts crude or cruel with them, unless they deserve it, but he'd never be violent. As for how he deals with your father, they've been enemies for years at this point. His opinion of your father is very biased on personal history and preferences."

" What do you mean?" 

" Well, while your father is a catholic, a major point against him. Alucard can respect the man he is, and the values he holds, having once held them himself. So while yes, due to life's choices, they are on opposite ends of the same scale. They are, for all intent and purpose, on the same scale. Two sides of the same coin, if you will." 

" So, because my Father basks in God's light, and Alucard shuns it, they are for all points of purpose the same person, but can't get along because of said difference?" 

" Correct." 

" Huh. I never would've thought of it like that." 

Walter came in with the tea, and the next few hours were all three of us working on organizing her files and talking. It was nice, having friends that had a different perspective than I did. I just hope I can keep these friends despite the fact they had a monster in the basement.