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Seras resolved to never dog-sit for Pip again. She'd already been dragged down a set of stairs, skinned both knees, and damn near popped her shoulder out of the socket. At least Sylvie, Pip's whiny pit bull, was going relatively slow instead of making Seras jog after her. Still, that meant Seras had to creep behind the dog, stopping every two seconds to let Sylvie sniff at grass and watching her like a hawk in case she randomly had to crap. Seras had to remind herself every minute or so that she was getting paid.
Sylvie was nosing with interest at a leaf when suddenly her head shot up, eyes squinting at something in the distance. From somewhere in the direction Sylvie was looking, Seras heard a voice shout, "Baskerville!"
She turned her head in time to see a great black dog fling itself at her.
With an undignified yelp, Seras fell on her ass, skimming her palms on the asphalt. The impact knocked Sylvie's leash from her hand and she cursed loudly, but even that was almost impossible to hear over the muffling of the dog's fur and it's deafening barking. For a moment, Seras was terrified that she was going to die here, mauled to death by a random dog in the middle of a Thursday while dog-sitting for Pip, but after a few seconds she realized that she didn't feel any pain. Teeth were not ripping into her face or chest and claws were not touching any part of her skin.
In fact, the dog was licking her face. It was a very affectionate attack.
She pushed stiffly at the dog to remove it from her face, squirming away from its tongue. "Ugh, ew! Puppy, off, off—" It would not be swayed. It's tongue touched her eye.
The same voice from before, now closer, snapped, "Baskerville! Off, now!"
The great black dog yipped and cheered as it was pulled off of her, panting with excitement. Seras gasped for a breath, sitting up on her palms and spitting out a mouthful of dog hair and drool. She shook her head, and was about to start breathlessly yelling at the dog's owner, when she noticed several things.
First, Sylvie had not run away immediately, which Seras expected her to do from experience. Second, Sylvie had not run away because whoever owned the great black dog(Baskerville, evidently) had two other dogs, who Sylvie was preoccupied with. Third, the great black dog's owner was already starting to apologize, and wow, she was stunning.
It was a woman, dark and handsome in a deep green pea coat. She looked tall, legs going on for miles, and long, blonde hair swept over one shoulder and hanging from her face in what seemed a gravity-defying manner. From where she was still laying on the street, Seras could see, edging from beneath dark gray slacks, white JITAIs.
Oh my god, a hot rich person's dog just almost killed me because it wanted to lick my face.
"Are you alright?" Tall-Dark-and-Handsome was saying, and Seras realized maybe she'd been staring. "Hello? Did you hit your head?"
"Uh..." Seras worked her mouth, gathering the strength to look up to the woman's face with what she hoped was her most put-together smile, "No, I'm okay! Um, just, kinda... bowled me over..." She shrugged as well she could. "I'm alright."
Tall-Dark-and-Handsome transferred all the leashes to one hand, extending the other toward's Seras's face. "Here, let me help you."
With a grunt, Seras pulled herself off the street by the stranger's strong grip, and had to consciously put in the effort to release her hand. Not only was it a suede glove, it was unbelievably warm. She shook the thought from her head, wiping loose gravel off her palms against her pants. Tall-Dark-and-Handsome tilted her head, looking at Seras with concern from behind round, silver-edged glasses. "You're sure you're okay? I apologize, this is completely my fault. He's always been the problem child."
Seras laughed, linking her fingers together awkwardly. "No, I understand how they can be! Here, I should—Sylvie, come here!"
"Oh, let me," Tall-Dark-and-Handsome did some more shuffling, passing leashes back and forth between her hands. Seras tried not to swoon at the fact that she'd picked up Sylvie's leash as if she wasn't the reason Seras had dropped it. Really, she couldn't be expected to keep her head on right when this woman was moving her fingers about like that. "There you are. Lovely dog."
Seras flashed a grin, taking Sylvie as the dog tried vainly to keep sniffing at the others. "Thanks! She's not mine, though. I, uh, babysit. Dog-sit, I mean. For a friend. He's out of town." Intuitive, Seras, stop talking. "Um, I'm Seras."
Tall-Dark-and-Handsome smiled, and oh, that was bad. Very, very bad. Perfect heart-shaped lips revealed a sliver of straight, white teeth and the teasing essence of dimples and—
She'd just said something. Tall-Dark-and-Handsome just been talking to her, probably about something important, and Seras was too busy ogling to hear it. Seras was a romantic, historically, but she'd never been so starstruck as to completely miss entire sentences because people were hot. New low. Excellent voice though, very smooth and silky even if Seras hadn't comprehended a smidge of it. She settled for nodding stupidly, both hands clutching Sylvie's leash for dear life. God, she was probably bright red. She caught the last bit, snapping to life in time for the perfect mouth to finish: "Where are my manners. Integra Hellsing."
The suede glove facilitated a solid handshake that Seras participated in perhaps too bonelessly, too busy gaping. She blustered, "Hellsing?"
Integra nodded, smiling primly. "Like the company."
A business mogul's dog just licked my face.
She was likely making a stupid face because Integra chuckled, a contained, sophisticated sound that only worsened Seras's near-catatonic state. "Don't make that face, dear. I'm off the clock."
Seras bit the inside of her lip against the word dear. "Sorry! Uh—I just—Wow." She tucked some hair behind her ear as an excuse to look away. "I feel like I should apologize to you..."
Again, Integra laughed, shifting her weight onto one leg. She was standing still. She wanted to talk. "No, really. This dog is a nightmare, all the blame is mine. You just sort of look like this thing he has, it's like a cute little..." She trailed off, lip curling. "I also apologize for comparing you to a dog toy just now."
"Ha! Don't worry about it," Seras beamed, "Makes me feel better than if he just liked to attack." Cute little... Seras was going to lose her mind. Integra was probably comparing her to a slobbery chew toy, but cute. Trying to save herself from this realization, Seras asked lightly, "So, how old is he?"
"Would you believe me if I said this one isn't mine either?" Seras raised her eyebrows and Integra shrugged. "Also happen to be dog-sitting, so, no idea. But these two are mine." She raised the leashes of the other two dogs, who had been marvelously well-behaved as they spoke. "That's Shelby, and that's Robert, both three."
This made Seras giggle, and at Integra's scrutinizing look she brought a hand to her mouth. "It's nothing. Just... I like it when animals have people names. Its so funny." Integra scoffed, leaning down to pet Robert.
"I think it's classier than Baskerville," She hummed, "But, there's no fixing goths."
"You know I used to have a cat named Siouxsie?"
Integra snorted through her nose.
"Really!" Seras nodded her head. "I may not look it but goth rock used to be my shit! But Spellbound reminds me of an ex so the whole genre's kind of ruined for me now."
Despite this being very unnecessary over-sharing for a person she'd just met, Integra just laughed into her fist again, giving Seras a fond look. "I'm sorry to hear that."
"Oh," Seras waved her hand, "I've gotten over it. I don't date girls who think spitting in drinks counts as witchcraft anymore."
Integra raised her eyebrows, smirking thinly. "Awful specific. I take it you're seeking to correct a type."
That was probably one of the douchiest things anyone had ever said to Seras but she honestly didn't even notice, that was how damn attractive this woman was. Seras needed to get a grip here. Trying to shake some sense into her head, she laughed nervously, jutting a thumb over her shoulder, "Well, I won't keep you any longer! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to talk so long—"
"Nonsense. And stop apologizing, you're the one who fell. Look at your hands, tch." Integra patted a hand over one of her pockets. "Here you are, take this. I insist."
Before Seras could protest Integra pressed something into her hand, and Seras fought not to black out at the contact(Later she'd reflect that they had done a lot of touching). It was a handkerchief, a pale green square with gold initialing in the corner. Seras stared down at it, what little blood wasn't already there rushing to her face.
She was pulled away from her reverie by the sensation of a hand on her face.
A hand on her face.
Integra, taller and darker and handsomer than Seras thought possible, drew two fingers along the bottom of Seras's jaw, turning her head up to look at her. Seras's eyes widened, mouth slack where Integra held it. She was acutely aware of the pressure on her skin, of the sharp blue gaze on her face.
No way.
Integra cocked her head minutely, lips drawn together. The picture of absolute confidence, she dipped her head just slightly, a hair closer. Seras's breath hitched.
Voice soft and alluring, Integra cooed, "My business card is folded in. I'll await your call."
And like a condescending, butch Aphrodite she brushed away, dogs obediently trotting at her heel. Seras probably stood in that same spot for about five minutes.
At great length, when she was sure this wasn't all an elaborate daydream after she'd been knocked out from falling down the stairs, Seras whispered to Sylvie, "Remind me to thank Pip, huh?" Sylvie barked, and the business card burned a hole in her pocket the entire walk home.
Maybe she'll dog-sit again.