Chapter Text
"Is that all?"
Cyclops looked through the list. When everything was checked off, he turned back to his friends. "We got everything on the list."
Nana looked at the bubbling potion in the cauldron. Her tiny arms hugged the fluffy Molina in worry. "Please work. Please work." She muttered in Molina's blue fur. The chubby feline seemed to have no interest in its surrounding and chewed happily on a steamed bun. Nana had been worrying about the Miya problem all the time. Sure, the elf turned into a cute baby but Nana missed having adventures with her big sister.
Harley poured in the last ingredient and gave it a quick stir. The potion bubbled more and changed from green to a bright pink. The three mages gathered around the cauldron and Harley scooped up a small bottle of the potion. He gave it a gentle shake and the potion shimmered like fairy dust. "It's done. This should cure, Miya."
*******
Miya peeked from underneath the table. Hey big eyes looked around and she quickly hid when she spotted a familiar figure. Heavy footsteps thumped past and Miya covered her mouth to stifle out a giggle. The seeker was walking around the table, like a predator stalking.
"Now where is that little moon elf?" A husky voice said. Miya giggled from behind her hands. She watched the tall shadow walked past. "Miya, come out come out wherever you are..."
Alucard stopped stalking around the table and leaned against it. He tapped his finger on his chin in a mock thoughtful manner. He thought out loud. "Hmmm, I wonder where she went?" He grinned and formed his fingers into claws. "When I find her, and I'm going to gobble her up!"
The blond turned around and he faked surprise when he saw a little female elf crawling out from underneath the table. Miya squealed and tried to quickly run away from the man in blue. She went under tables and chairs to stay away from Alucard. The little girl squeaked when the hunter caught her.
"I got the little rascal!" The blond blew raspberries and pretended to bite her like a monster eating its prey. Miya giggled and laughed while trying to push the 'monster' away from her. From far away, Gusion watched them with a smile. Alucard let go of Miya and the game of cat and mouse continues. The hunter had a big smile on his face. Something that could hardly be seen these days. Gusion forgot the last time he saw Alucard smile. The pain of his past made him cold and almost emotionless. It was amazing how a small child could break through a dead man's heart.
"Kitty!" Miya cried out. She grabbed the assassin's legs and buried her face in. It was unknown to the reason why Miya decided to call Gusion 'kitty'. 'Gusion' is a hard word for a small toddler to say but calling him kitty does raise some questions. Nonetheless, Gusion let the child do whatever she please.
"What, Dracula is messing with you?"
"Awoo!" She pointed to the panting demon hunter. Then, she mimicked a growling monster by baring her teeth and hands as claws. Alucard scoffed and rolled her eyes.
He flopped down beside them on the sofa. He grabbed her from Gusion and glared at her. "Don't think Kitty can save you from me." He hugged her close. "But I will save you from everything else."
Gusion tsk-ed. "Including dirty diapers?"
"Shut it you!"
MIya cooed and gently tapped Alucard's cheek. It got the hunter's attention and he smiled at her. "I'll fight any dirty diapers for my little Miya." He gave a soft kiss on the little girl's forehead and stood up. "I'm thinking of a walk in the park. You wanna join?" He asked, turning to Gusion. The brunette turned at the mention of his name. Gusion placed down the glass of Coke he was drinking.
"Nah, I'm good." He said, leaning back. "I just wanna have a break. Just for this whole week, I had to do 5 major jobs. I could use a day off."
"Yeah, enjoy your holiday." Alucard carried Miya to his room. He changed the girl's clothes into a more comfortable clothing for a walk. Alucard, on the other hand, decided for a plain white shirt and a blue abstract collared shirt which he left unbuttoned over the top. He wore a pair of khaki shorts and a pair of black shoes. Alucard was fixing his hair in the mirror when he saw something in his box of accessories. His hand picked up a bracelet made of leather and wooden beads. He smiled at the carvings on the beads.
"What's this?"
"Happy Birthday!"
"Oh dear Lord, Miya. You don't need to do this."
"Why not? It's your birthday. So, I thought I give you something special. See, it's a bracelet with ancient Moonlight Elf runes carved on it. It's a protection spell."
"Thanks, Miya. I'll wear it."
Alucard smiled as he slipped on the bracelet. His eyes moved to the mirror and he caught himself smiling. To be honest, he was a bit surprised with himself. With his tragic past and troubled mind, he was scared to be in love. He was scared to have a family and he was scared to be in a relationship. In his fear, he stayed away from others and hid away his feelings. Happiness is his worst enemy. It was happiness that robbed him of his family. It was happiness that made him weak. With that in mind, Alucard created a bitter and cold persona just so he could protect himself from getting hurt again. But deep down, he was hurt by loneliness.
The young man sighed and tried to put on a smile. He turned around to the baby on his baby. Miya bounced lightly on the bed with her tiny arms up. "Up up up!" She said, demanding to be in her caretaker's arms. The little elf was lifted up from the bed and placed on his hip. They waved at the brunette resting on the sofa and left the apartment.
The weather is quite warm today. But it doesn't stop people from flooding the streets. Miya seemed fascinated in almost anything she spotted with her eyes. Balloons, horse carriages or even the colourful fruits being sold by merchants. Alucard bought her some strawberries and apples. He knew how much Miya loves fruits especially strawberries. He remembered her reactions when she ate a strawberry or anything related to fruits like cakes or other baked goods. Miya is just another typical innocent girl who loves sweet and adorable things. If not, she wouldn't be cuddling the fluffy pony toy Alucard got for her from a carnival game.
"Awoo!" Miya called to him, pointing to something at the front. Alucard looked to where she was pointing and saw a clown making balloon animals. Alucard raised a brow and turned to her. "You want a balloon animal?"
"Yes pwease."
Alucard hummed and walked to the clown. He watched the clown blew air into a purple balloon and twisted it with a green sausage balloon to make a dog shaped balloon. Or it looks like one.
"Here you go, kiddo." The clown gave the balloon to the little kid. He waved the small kid goodbye and turned to see Alucard with Miya. "What can I get for ya?"
"Something special for the little one." Alucard jerked Miya on his hip, making the girl giggle. The clown looked at Alucard then to the small elf he was carrying. He then went to his colourful collections of balloons and tried to decide one for his customer. He chose a light blue one and a yellow one. The blue one was filled with air followed by the yellow one. They were twisted together into a flower. The clown showed Miya the balloon flower and it made the girl smile big.
"Pwetty fwower!"
Alucard let Miya take the flower balloon before paying the clown. Miya seemed very happy with her new toy. She just wouldn't stop swinging it around as if it was a sword. She even made 'swish' sounds as she played. Alucard walked them to the central park and lucky for them, there was not many people around. Only a few youngsters on their skateboards and adults walking their pets. Alucard let Miya down to her feet and the girl ran around the fountain. The blond sat on a bench near the fountain as he watched the small elf play. She found other children and went to play with them. They chased each other around the fountain, laughing and squealing.
Alucard couldn't help the smile as he watched the children play. His heart tightened at the memory of his childhood. He used to laugh as he played tag with his friends. They played with mud and go swimming in the small river near the village. They would go to an orchard and sneakily steal some fruits for themselves. Then, he would go home and have a hearty dinner with his mom and dad.
Mom and Dad
He bit his bottom lip as it quivered. The pain in his heart got worse and he felt his eyes water. Alucard growled and furiously wiped them away. He kept his head down, not wanting others see him crying. He cursed to himself for being so soft. It's all in the past now, he shouldn't let it bother him so much.
"Hey, you alright?"
Alucard took a deep breath and looked up. His frown deepened when he saw Alice in front of him. The vampire queen wore a black crop top, a pair of denim short and a pair of ankle high boots. She had put on a minimal amount of make-up on her face unlike the usual 20 layers of foundation she usual had on. The subtle change got him a bit surprised.
"What do you want?"
"You still hate me..." She said in a neutral tone. Alucard scoffed.
"How can I not hate the one behind the murder of my parents?" Alucard said with a mocking smile. "Not to mention the 5 years of torture in Hell. I enjoyed that. Thank you so much for your kindness."
Alice seemed hurt but Alucard didn't care. She was one of the people he despised. He didn't care how she felt. People said to him that she had changed. Others believed her but not Alucard. He knew demons better than ones. The basic rule of survival is to never take fully what a demon say. Alice may act nice but Alucard suspected she would show her evil side once everyone had their guards down. Her title as the Queen of the Apocalypse is no mere decoration.
The young woman seemed hesitant of her next action. Yet, she dared herself to sit beside him. Of all the people she had hurt- Vexana or Pharsa, Alucard was the most bitter with her. Vexana and Pharsa, despite losing their loved ones, they managed to slowly give Alice a second chance but Alucard, he was the hardest one to forgive. He did not only lost his parents, he lost his childhood, his freedom including his own sanity. Plus, because of her, Alucard was no longer just a human.
He's now a dhampir, half human, half vampire.
Alucard hated demons. Being a half demon, made him hate himself more. Surely he blamed Alice for this. She was the one who ordered her minions to infect Alucard with demonic particles in his blood. If it wasn't because of her, Alucard would have grown up with his family. He would have become a normal human with a healthy mind.
"I'm really sorry." Alice started. She turned to the hunter to see if there was a reaction. Alucard had his attention on the children instead. She sighed and continued. "You know my past right? I was just a minion, a sex slave of a vampire king. I was abused everyday. He humiliated me. Tortured me. But I was too scared to fight back until one day, I had enough. I found a book of forbidden spells and I studied it everyday." Alice clenched her jaw. "I use my magic to kill him like how I kill others these days. When I killed him, it felt...good. Like some sort of relief. So I killed more. I killed everyone in the castle and I took the throne as mine. It was since then I worked my way to become the Queen of the Apocalypse."
Alucard was silent for some time before he opened his mouth. "What're you expecting, telling me all this?"
He turned to her with his brows raised in a questioning manner. "What're you trying to gain by telling me your past?" He whispered to her. Venom was dripping from his words. Alice couldn't keep in contact with his eyes. All she could see was hatred and thirst for blood.
Her blood...
"You think I would easily forgive you just because you said you used to be raped by a vampire king?" Alucard laughed sarcastically. "Oh you're such an idiot. I'm not as soft as you think. Maybe I was before you decided to dump me in that prison."
Alucard stood up, looming over her. Alice shrunk at his height. Fear was building up inside her. "You think just because you got raped, you got abused that you have the right to hurt others? I was whipped until my back hardly has any skin on it. I was left to starve and I was forced to eat dead rats or even my own shit. You stripped me naked, tied me up on a pole and put me up like I'm a display on a parade float. I lost my family, my dignity and even my sanity."
"I know what I did..."
"Oh really? What about Vexana? You slept with her husband, spread rumors of Vexana performing black magic to the point her own people burnt her to death. She came back as the Necromancer due to the despair and anger that you left in her heart. Pharsa? You ruined her best day. She was going to get married and you killed her husband. You even made her blind."
Alucard huffed in disgust. Alice had her head bowed to hide away her tears. "It's disgusting that you thought you were just a victim of a situation. I would love to kill you slowly with my bare hands." He walked away. "But I have better things to do than goofing around with a bratty slut."
Alice sniffed and sobbed when Alucard left. She knew of her sins. She tried to change. She knew a lot of people hate her for what she had done and she tried to change. But it was hard. Change was never an easy task. The vampire wiped her tears and stood up. She watched Alucard lifting a little elf girl onto his shoulders. There was a big smile on his face. A huge contrast to the scowl he had before. Was she really that dirty to his eyes?
"Maybe I am..." Alice mumbled. She stood up and decided to walk home to the small cottage she lived with Rafaela. It was nice of the angel to let her stay. At least there are some people in the world that would accept her.
*******
"Alu! Alu! Alu!"
Alucard placed down the glass and saw three mages running towards him. Nana, Harley and Cyclops panted for breath. Then, Harley raised a finger. "We-We found...the cure." He announced between pants.
"Oh really? Let's see then."
The tallest of the three took over a bottle from the inside of his coat. A pinkish glittery liquid sloshed in the cube shaped bottle. "This will surely bring Miya back to normal." Nana said.
Alucard stared at the potion then at the little girl who was playing with Ellie and Ruby. He had a desire for a drink and he left Miya with the two girls. There was no way he would drink with a baby around. The last thing he needed was Miya accidentally taking a sip of his whiskey. He watched the elf playing with her friends. The big smile on her face and the small giggles she made. The way her arms stretched to grab the ball Ellie and Ruby was throwing around. She laughed and squealed when the ball was in her hands.
After taking the potion, he would no longer be hearing those childish giggles. Miya would no longer be smaller than his hips. She would be a grown woman, with large breasts and a mature body. No more he would hear those tiny 'Awoo' or have gentle pats on his cheeks just to get his attention. As much as Alucard wanted to help get Miya's original body back, he would definitely miss this baby version.
Alucard sighed. "Let's get this over with."
The three mages looked happy, oblivious to what the hunter is feeling. They asked the hunter to get something to trick Miya into taking the potion. So, Alucard bought a slice of strawberry cake. Nana sprinkled some of the potion onto the cake and all they need was the little toddler to eat it. The blond called Ruby to bring Miya over. The Red Riding Hood showed the little elf the cake.
"Look Miya. Alu got you a cake."
Miya's eyes widened and she clapped her tiny hands. "Cake! Cake!" She chirped. Ruby placed her down on a chair beside Alucard. The baby elf stared at the cake in awe before taking the plastic fork. She turned to Alucard and the hunter gestured to the cake. Miya seemed to bounce in her seat before taking a small piece of the cake and eat it. She hummed as she savored the sweet cake. She ate more until the cake was only left as crumbs on the plate.
"Yummy!" Miya giggled. Alucard smile and his hand stroked her head. He turned to Harley.
"How long until the potion takes effect?"
Harley tried to recall the scroll of the spell. "For a day, if I'm not mistaken..."
Alucard nodded and turned to the happy baby beside him. He placed a hand on her head. "Just one day before I end my shift then..." he whispered to himself. He picked her up into his arms. "So how about we make it the best one?"
Miya giggled and Alucard couldn't resist kissing her on the forehead. Nana, Harley and Cyclops gave each other a small high five. All they needed to do now is wait for Miya to undergo a transformation back to her original body. They silently prayed that the potion works because this was their last resort. They doubt Diggie could reverse the effect and definitely Harith might not be able to help seeing how busy he is with his job.
As Alucard and Miya walked out of the door, a figure silently watched them from afar.