After spending the entire night in Maria's company, Alex opened his eyes and turned his head. Maria was lying next to him, gently hugging his arm even in her sleep. Her usually neatly styled hair was now loose and softly fell across her face, giving her an especially peaceful and touching appearance. Alex carefully brushed the strands aside.
When his fingers touched her hair, a light, sleepy smile appeared on Maria's face, and she gently rubbed her cheek against his arm, continuing to sleep. Looking at her calm, beautiful face, Alex leaned forward a little and tenderly kissed her on the cheek.
At the touch of his lips, Maria's eyelids fluttered slightly, and she slowly opened her eyes. Seeing that Alex was still beside her, a tender, warm smile bloomed on her face. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her whole body against him, as if wanting to absorb every second of this morning warmth.
Alex hugged Maria back, pulling her even closer. Leaning against him, Maria buried her nose in his neck and began to drift off again, feeling deep calm and reliable warmth. Sensing her steady, peaceful breathing, Alex realized she had fallen back asleep. Slowly stroking Maria's hair, he decided to spend a little more time simply lying beside her, enjoying this rare quiet closeness.
An hour later, Maria finally woke up and opened her eyes again. Raising her head, she saw Alex's face very close. A tender smile lit up her face once more, and she leaned forward slightly to kiss him on the lips. When their lips met, Alex opened his eyes, and the same warm, loving smile appeared on his face.
"In the end, I still got my hugs," Alex said with a smile, wrapping his arms around Maria's waist.
"I somehow knew you wouldn't be able to resist your silly jokes… The other girls warned me that you know how to ruin any romantic moment," Maria said with a sigh, placing her palm on his face.
"But at least our life definitely won't be boring," Alex replied with a smile while Maria kept her hand on his face.
"I would like to argue… But you are the one who managed to wake me from my nightmare… You showed me that even in the darkest places there can be a light of hope… And I am very glad that I met you… Even if it happened in my nightmare," Maria said quietly, removing her hand from his face.
Alex gently took her palm in his hand and pressed his cheek against it. Looking into Alex's eyes, Maria could have said many more words about how grateful she was to him for everything he had done for her. But she understood that not all feelings could be expressed in words. Maria knew that beside her was the one who had accepted her despite her past and given her a new future where she no longer had to relive the same nightmare over and over again.
After lying in bed a little longer, Alex and Maria went to have breakfast. Entering the kitchen, they saw Seras, who was trying her hardest to wake up and finish her breakfast. Hearing footsteps behind her, Seras slowly turned her head and nodded slightly, trying once again not to fall asleep. Sitting down to eat, Alex couldn't help but ask why she was so sleepy.
With pauses to yawn, Seras explained that she had stayed up late watching a series.
"Seras, how can you even feel sleepy if you're not human?" Maria asked, seeing her in such a state once again.
"I don't know why this happens… But it does… Alex doesn't need to sleep at all. Yet he still sleeps and then complains that he didn't get enough rest," Seras said, trying not to yawn, pointing her finger at Alex.
"Hmm… That's true," Maria said, shifting her gaze to Alex, who was calmly drinking coffee.
"Don't look at me, I just like to sleep," Alex replied in a carefree tone, shrugging slightly.
Seras looked at him with a sleepy gaze and stuck out her tongue. Even after becoming what she was now, Seras still couldn't figure out why she could sleep and then feel sleepy after waking up. Alex's answers didn't help at all. So Seras decided to do the same as the day she became a Nosferatu: simply accept it and act like everything was supposed to be this way.
Even if she was now only half Nosferatu and half Apostle of Destruction. Maria, not receiving a proper answer, simply decided to accept the fact that her husband simply liked to sleep, and that was enough for her. After finishing breakfast, Alex was going to visit Alucard to go on a date with her. But this time not in another world.
Quickly kissing Maria and Seras on the cheek goodbye, Alex left the kitchen and headed toward the painting that led to the basement. On the way to Alucard, he thought about where he could take his wife on a date. And most importantly — that the place would match her tastes.
Reaching the painting, Alex paused for a moment before opening it and thought that they could go to Transylvania to visit one castle connected to Alucard's past.
Opening the painting like a door, Alex began descending the stairs into the basement. Reaching the doors, he saw mist seeping out from under them. At that moment, Alex realized he was already expected. And as soon as he touched the doors, the next moment he found himself in a different place.
Everything around him was an endless sea, and a bright moon hung in the sky. He himself was sitting on the throne where Alucard usually sat. Looking around, Alex couldn't help but admit that his wife had succeeded in creating her own dimension. Continuing to look around, he felt someone's arms wrap around his neck, and black hair covered his view.
Raising his head, Alex met Alucard's red eyes, which looked at him with light amusement. Alucard was floating above him with a smile on her face. Smoothly flying over Alex, she slowly descended onto his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"I kept wondering when you would come to me… I was already starting to think you would continue ignoring me until the very end," Alucard said in an offended tone, running her nail along Alex's cheek.
"I would believe your offended tone if I didn't know what you're really like," Alex said with a slight chuckle, wrapping his arms around Alucard's waist.
"Well… I tried. I thought playing the role of an offended girl would be much more interesting… But I only felt disgust toward myself," Alucard said with a look of disgust on her face, lazily crossing her legs and leaning her back against Alex's chest.
"I would like to ask why you decided to do this… But I came to invite you on a date," Alex said, resting his chin on Alucard's shoulder.
"I don't want to…" Alucard lazily replied, leaning her head against Alex's.
"You don't want to go on a date or you don't want to go anywhere?" Alex asked with interest, slightly turning his head and burying his nose in her cheek.
"I don't want to go anywhere… I would prefer time alone with you. Where no one will disturb us," Alucard said, turning on Alex's lap to face him.
Alex looked at his wife and nodded. He understood that Alucard was not the type of woman who would go on dates like ordinary couples, and that she would prefer to simply spend time together where no one would bother them. Nodding, Alex agreed to spend as much time with Alucard as she herself wished.
A light smile appeared on Alucard's face, and she turned around again, leaning her back against Alex's chest and resting her head on his shoulder. Alex and Alucard continued sitting in silence in each other's company in a dimension where there was only the moon and an endless sea.
After sitting in silence for a while, Alex couldn't help but ask how Alucard had spent time with their daughters. Hearing the question, a light smile appeared on Alucard's face as she raised her palm toward the moon. She began telling him how her little adventure with their daughters had gone and what they had done.
A long sigh escaped Alex's mouth when he heard that Alucard had allowed their daughters to blow up an entire volcano where one of Merckoff's laboratories was located. Hearing her husband's sigh, Alucard only laughed.
"I hope it was just the volcano…" Alex said with a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Yes, it was just the volcano and the island," Alucard said with a tender smile on her face.
"The island?" Alex asked, looking up at Alucard.
"The volcano is part of the island. Isn't that obvious?" Alucard repeated, turning on Alex's lap and dangling her legs over the armrests.
Looking at Alucard, Alex sighed again and took out his phone from his pocket. Opening the family chat, he wrote just one question. In response, he received a short video of his little princesses blowing up an entire volcano along with the island. After watching the short video of the explosion of a whole volcano and island, Alex wanted to know how no one had noticed it.
In response, he only received a name. Turning his head toward Alucard, who kept smiling, Alex rubbed his forehead and put the phone back in his pocket. On one hand, Alex had nothing against his daughters blowing up an entire volcano. He was only worried that it had happened in the world where he was currently working.
But fortunately, Alucard had isolated the space in time so that no one noticed the explosion of the entire island. Alucard, for her part, happily watched her husband's reaction, continuing to have fun without hiding it.
"I see you had fun," Alex said, pressing his forehead against Alucard's.
"Of course. Your reaction is exactly what I wanted to see, my love. And I don't need to read your thoughts to understand what's going on in there," Alucard said, poking her finger at Alex's forehead.
"At least now you're on the list of mothers who allow everything," Alex said with a chuckle, taking Alucard's palm in his hand and gently kissing it.
In response, Alucard laughed, not denying Alex's words that she would be the mother who allowed everything. But what Alex definitely knew was that a woman like Alucard would kill anyone who even thought about harming those she had begun to consider her daughters. When Alucard stopped laughing, Alex gently cupped her cheeks with his hands and kissed her.
Feeling the kiss, Alucard narrowed her eyes and tightly wrapped her arms around Alex's neck, turning to face him. At the same moment, Alucard wrapped her legs around Alex's waist, pressing him even harder against the throne they were sitting on. At that moment, she made it clear that the most interesting part of their alone time was about to begin, and it would last for a very long time.
After a very long time, Alex was finally able to leave his wife's dimension. His hair and clothes were disheveled, there were traces of red lipstick on his face, distinct bite marks on his neck, and red scratches from nails running down his back. Closing the door behind him, Alex exhaled through his nose.
He was starting to forget that when his wife became a Cosmic Goddess, time with her simply ceased to exist if she herself wanted it. Looking at the door, Alex couldn't help but think that Alucard's power was so great that if she wanted, she could wipe out an entire universe with a snap of her fingers.
Alex couldn't help but laugh at the fact that his wife used such power to create her own dimension, lock him inside, and spend time with him. But Alex's laughter quickly stopped when he remembered that he used his own power for even greater stupidities, like turning into a cat or a child to have fun.
Awkwardly clearing his throat, Alex decided to leave Hellsing. He had already said goodbye to Integra, Maria, and Seras, so he could calmly return to America. Teleporting back to the bunker, Alex forgot what he currently looked like. Once back in the bunker, Alex froze in place.
A few moments before Alex appeared in the bunker, Dean was in the library. Dean was sitting on a chair with his feet on the table, holding a bottle of beer in one hand and lazily flipping through news with the other, looking for the next case to distract himself from everything happening in their lives. And when Alex suddenly appeared, Dean nearly fell off the chair and choked on his beer upon seeing his appearance.
Choking on the beer, Dean began coughing, staring at Alex. Alex's appearance raised many questions in Dean's mind about what the hell had happened to him. In Dean's eyes, Alex looked like he had encountered a tigress in heat. Alex had disheveled hair and clothes, strange red marks on his face, bite marks on his neck, and very noticeable scratches on his shoulders and back.
"Holy shit, man! What happened to you? Who did this to you?" Dean asked, clearing his throat and staring at Alex.
"Have you ever heard the phrase that love can be extreme and dangerous?" Alex said in a hollow voice, fixing his hair.
"I think… I've heard something like that somewhere. Still, tell me who did this to you so thoroughly…" Dean asked, laughing as he looked Alex up and down.
"This is what happens when your wife is an ancient Nosferatu," Alex said calmly, taking out a mirror and a napkin to wipe the lipstick marks off his face.
In Dean's head, all possible images of how this had happened immediately flashed. Dean quickly shook his head to get rid of those images and began watching as Alex tried to put himself in order. Watching this, Dean couldn't hold back and laughed again after Alex took off his torn T-shirt to put on a new one.
Hearing Dean's laughter, Alex looked at him with a blank gaze and continued changing, once again glad that his body was durable enough to withstand the love of women with such power. After all, even Lady Death, who had tricked him into her dimension for the second time, had been quite insistent, trying to show her love that time.
But Alex was sure that Lady Death had done it partly to anger Nyan-Nyan because of their old grudges against each other. A couple of minutes later, Alex changed into new clothes and no longer looked like he had been making love with his wife, but rather trying to fight off a very dangerous woman.
"Well, at least there's one plus to you being Death. You don't have to worry about dying from snu-snu," Dean said, laughing as he opened a new beer.
"I won't argue with that… Although that sounds like the beginning of a funny anecdote: 'Death died from snu-snu,'" Alex said, sitting down on a chair and pulling a beer toward himself.
"That would be pretty funny if it happened to you… Alright, how did your dates go?" Dean asked, laughing as he looked at Alex.
"What's up? Want some advice for the future?" Alex asked, raising an eyebrow with a smile.
In response to Alex's question, Dean just rolled his eyes, showing that he was simply curious where Alex had taken his girls this time. After all, he had taken them to some very interesting places before, so Dean thought it would be the same this time. Seeing no reason to hide anything, Alex began telling him how he and Seras had gone to Tokyo, how his evening with Integra had gone, and how he had visited the theater with Maria.
Dean nodded, slowly sipping his beer. But when he heard that Alex had sat through three hours watching a guy singing in green tights dressed as a tree, Dean couldn't hold back and laughed. Ignoring Dean's laughter, Alex continued telling him about the slow performance.
After a couple of minutes, Dean started saying that even listening to it was boring, let alone seeing it in person. Finishing the story about how his dates had gone, Alex finished his beer and reached for another one.
"Where are the girls and Sam?" Alex asked, opening another bottle of beer.
"The girls left an hour ago to the city to buy groceries and some small stuff… And Sam… He's probably locked himself in his room again, thinking we don't know he's reading his porn books," Dean explained, reaching for another beer.
"They're not porn books, it's 'A Song of Ice and Fire,'" Sam's irritated voice sounded behind Alex and Dean.
Alex and Dean turned their heads and saw Sam entering the library holding a book. Approaching Alex and Dean, Sam placed the book on the table and gave his brother a blank look. Dean just snorted and offered his brother a beer. Sam took the beer and immediately opened it, taking a small sip.
While Sam was drinking the beer, Dean opened the book to where Sam had stopped, and it was a page with a bed scene. A grin appeared on Dean's face, and he turned the book toward Alex so he could see for himself. Seeing what Dean had done, Sam snatched his book and immediately closed it.
"I told you it was a porn book. And you still laughed at us for watching anime," Dean said with a grin, looking at the irritated Sam.
"Found something to compare it to. A book with a deep plot or your porn cartoons that you watch when no one's looking," Sam said irritably, sitting down on a chair on the other side of the table.
"Anime is a form of art," Alex and Dean said at the same time, looking at Sam.
"No, I don't think so," Sam replied nonchalantly, shrugging.
Sam looked at Dean and Alex, who had righteous expressions on their faces, as if it was all obvious. Shaking his head, Sam didn't want to start another argument on such a sore subject for Alex and Dean. The last time had been enough, when Alex and Dean had spent hours trying to prove to him that anime was better than books.
And Sam definitely didn't want to climb into that rabbit hole again, from which it was very difficult to get out. Deciding to change the subject, Sam wanted to discuss their upcoming plans to confront Amara. Alex already had a prepared plan for what he would say. Starting to explain what he planned to do, Alex outlined part of his plan to supposedly build a cage for Amara.
Dean, listening to this, didn't want Amara to end up in a cage again. But he decided to keep his opinion to himself in case the situation changed. After all, lately Amara hadn't harmed a single person, and the only exception had been Lucifer, whom no one cared about. According to Alex's plan, Lucifer was supposed to become a bargaining chip so that Amara would switch all her attention to him during her search for revenge against her brother.
While Alex, Dean, and Sam were discussing plans, the girls returned from the store with groceries in their hands. Seeing that Alex had returned, Enid immediately jumped up to him and pulled him aside. Alex was interested in what Enid wanted from him that she had pulled him aside for it. Enid asked Alex to lean down so she could tell him everything in his ear.
The interest inside Alex only grew when he saw Enid's actions. Leaning down, Alex wanted to know what Enid had come up with. And the first thing he thought was that Enid wanted to throw a party for someone. But when she told him about her plans, Alex looked at Enid in such a way that she smiled embarrassedly. Agreeing to Enid's proposal, Alex nodded, showing that he didn't mind.
An even more joyful smile appeared on Enid's face, and she jumped up to kiss him on the cheek and hug him. Kissing Alex on the cheek once more, Enid jumped down and ran to the other girls. Watching Enid joyfully bouncing with every step, Alex couldn't help but think how cute Enid could be in such simple situations. Chuckling, Alex returned to Dean and Sam.
"And what did that pink ball of fluff want from you?" Dean asked with interest, looking at Alex.
"Garth is throwing a family barbecue where the whole family and family friends will be. And of course, he invited his favorite niece," Alex said, reaching for his beer.
"Garth is throwing a barbecue for a family of werewolves?… Now that's news, of course. But why was Enid so secretive about it?" Dean whistled, rocking on his chair and pointing in the direction Enid had gone.
"What do you think, Dean?" Sam asked, looking at his brother with a blank gaze.
"That we're hunters and her whole big family are werewolves?" Dean asked, looking at Sam.
"No… It's so you wouldn't invite yourself to the free barbecue as a family friend," Alex replied, laughing and pointing his beer bottle at Dean.
"And why not? We're Garth's friends and your friends. So we can go to the free barbecue," Dean said in a tone as if it was obvious.
"You're impossible, Dean. Alex is going there as Enid's fiancé. What are you going to do there?" Sam said, shaking his head as he stood up from the chair.
Dean wanted to object, saying he could go there as Alex's older brother. In this situation, Dean didn't care that there would be only werewolves present. And before Dean could say anything, Sam took his book and beer and calmly left the library. Seeing Sam leave, Dean shifted his gaze to Alex.
But the place where Alex had been sitting was already empty, and Alex himself had quietly slipped away to help the girls put away the groceries in the kitchen. Grumbling under his breath, Dean grabbed his beer and headed to the kitchen with the simple goal of securing himself a spot at the werewolf family barbecue.
But Dean never managed to negotiate the trip to the barbecue. And to dissuade Dean from going to such a family event, Alex had to make some concessions, giving Dean several bottles of expensive alcohol that he had in his inventory.
Two days had passed since the conversation about the family barbecue trip. Alex and Enid left the bunker in the morning for Garth and Bess's house to help with the preparations for the family barbecue. Since Alex and Enid had left, nothing special had happened in the bunker. And gradually evening came, and everyone gathered in the library.
Wednesday sat off to the side playing her cello, paying no attention to the others. Not far from Wednesday was Alice, in front of whom stood a half-finished canvas with a painting. GIR, MIMI, and Stitch were posing for Alice, frozen in heroic poses and holding plastic swords. Lucina was working on her laptop, occasionally looking up with a smile on her face.
Lucina occasionally glanced at Alessa and Castiel, who were playing chess. Alessa calmly moved a chess piece and folded her arms on her chest like a little adult. Seeing her niece's move, Castiel rested his chin on his hand, thoughtfully looking at the chessboard. Samantha sat next to them, watching with interest as her daughter played chess.
"Hey, Cas. Aren't you ashamed of losing to a child at chess?" Dean asked, looking at the thoughtful Castiel.
"Uncle Dean. Just because you're stupid doesn't mean everyone around you will be stupid. At least realizing your own stupidity puts you one step above the rest of the stupid people," Alessa said in a calm tone, looking at Dean.
Hearing Alessa's words, Dean choked on his coffee and began coughing hard, slapping his chest. Dean was especially stung by Alessa's cold gaze and the tone in which she said such harsh words. The girls laughed upon hearing Alessa call Dean stupid. Castiel, however, paid no attention and thoughtfully touched a chess piece, then placed it back, deciding to make a different move.
By this time, Dean had cleared his throat and was about to argue with Alessa, proving that he wasn't stupid. Alessa just calmly blinked and looked away from Dean, turning her gaze back to the chessboard. Samantha, sitting nearby, gently stroked Alessa's hair.
"Dean, just accept it. In a way, Alessa is right… And are you really going to argue with a seven-year-old child?" Sam said, chuckling at his brother.
"No one was going to argue. And I'm not stupid," Dean said, wiping the coffee off the table.
"Then maybe you'll play chess with the child, Dean Winchester? Or are you afraid of losing, which would confirm your stupidity," Rowena said, sitting at the far end of the table and searching for a spell at Alex's insistent request.
"No one asked you… And why are you looking for a spell here?" Dean snapped, narrowing his eyes at Rowena.
"It's a pleasant atmosphere and music here. And a favorable atmosphere helps with the search, or didn't you know?" Rowena explained with a calm smile on her face, waving her hand slightly.
Dean looked at Rowena with a blank gaze and turned away, making it clear that he wasn't going to continue the conversation. And despite Alessa calling Dean stupid, the atmosphere in the library didn't change at all, and everyone continued doing their own thing. Taking his beer, Dean pulled up a chair closer and also decided to watch the chess game between Castiel and Alessa. Slowly sipping his beer, Dean pretended to understand everything, but in reality he understood nothing of what was happening right in front of him.
At the same time, Enid and Alex suddenly appeared in the library, and everyone immediately turned in their direction. But they immediately noticed the strange atmosphere hovering around Alex and Enid. Alex's face expressed serenity, as if nothing had happened at all, while Enid's face showed noticeable fatigue and a strained smile. Alex just raised his hand and immediately left the library, heading to the kitchen. As Alex left, Enid sighed heavily.
"What happened with you guys?" Lucina asked, noticing Alex and Enid's behavior.
"Have you ever seen someone get beaten with a corn cob?" Enid asked with a strained smile on her face, glancing at everyone in the library.
When Enid's question sounded, everyone reacted differently. But Lucina sighed heavily, partially guessing what had happened. And at the same time, everyone wondered why Enid had asked such a question and what had really happened at the family barbecue for such a question to be voiced.
Castiel calmly stood up from his seat and followed Alex to the kitchen to talk about business unrelated to the family barbecue. But no one paid attention to the fact that Castiel had simply left after Alex. At that moment, all attention was focused on Enid.
"What did Alex do?" Lucina asked, already feeling that everything hadn't ended as well as it seemed.
"Well… At the barbecue there wasn't just my family, but also family friends… And in general…" Enid began speaking with a strained smile on her face, nervously rubbing her cheek.
"Let me guess: some guy decided to hit on you, and Alex lost it?" Dean said in a cheerful tone, gesturing slightly with his hand.
"Something like that… It's just that werewolves have different habits… And, let's say… This guy decided to make me his mate," Enid said in a nervous tone, rubbing her hands and laughing nervously.
"And what happened next? Alex just beat the guy with a corn cob?" Alice asked with a wide smile on her face.
"Almost. Alex chased Zak all over the backyard, beating him with a corn cob," Enid said, laughing nervously and looking away.
"And that's not all. I'm right, aren't I?" Lucina said in a calm tone, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Yeah… Alex then tried to shove the corn cob where it definitely didn't belong. And when he failed, he beat up Zak's father and brothers too," Enid said, holding back laughter and turning away.
"Once again, where did he try to shove that corn cob on the guy?" Dean asked, swallowing hard as he looked at Enid.
With reddened cheeks, Enid turned to Dean, making it clear that she wasn't going to say it out loud. But Dean's imagination filled in the rest of the picture when he saw Enid's face. A moment later, Dean burst into loud laughter, clutching his stomach, which made Enid blush even more.
Lucina sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of her nose. Alice and Samantha couldn't stop laughing after hearing what had happened. A cold smile appeared on Wednesday's face, which she wasn't going to hide. Sam, meanwhile, was thinking about how the hell a simple family barbecue had turned into what Enid had described.
Enid herself, by the end of the story, only got angry, repeating that it was Zak who had ruined everything, not Alex. Unable to sit still, Dean immediately stood up from his seat and strode off in search of Alex. After all, he also wanted to hear Alex's version of events. The girls exchanged glances and followed Dean for the rest of the details.
To be continued...
(I've been trying to figure out how to get to the beginning of all the final events, and I've finally decided to start with this. I'll try to do everything normally, but my stomach has started to protest and hurt, due to allergies. I hope it'll pass by tomorrow, so I can sit down to write with renewed vigor. In the meantime, I'll go take my medicine and get something to eat. Peace, love, and corn.)
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