She had been able to stay awake on the plane, but half way to Dublin from the airport, Integra lost the battle and dozed off. Her heavy eyelids drooped and the warm morning sun seemed to steal all the energy from her body through the taxi's window. She finally succumbed and slumped down into the seat so that she could roll her head to the side and go to sleep comfortably.

Alucard glanced over at his Master and grinned; she was truly a sight to behold. He turned away and grimaced as the sun glared down at him. He knew he would crack if he had to sit in these horrid rays for the rest of the ride and his master was sleeping soundly, so he quietly moved over on the back seat so that he was right up next to Integra. Here, the sun didn't reach him and he was closer to his wonderfully vulnerable Master. Excellent. He missed the days when she was younger and more playful; now, she was more concerned about business and missions and it was difficult to ever have fun with her. That was partly why he insisted on annoying her; he did love their little bickering battles. She looked so cute when she was mad. He watched her as the taxi turned a corner. Her body shifted just slightly as if it were going to fall into him, but the taxi straightened out and Integra stayed where she was. Alucard frowned and looked ahead at the road they were driving down. He heard the taxi's blinker and grinned. The car took a wide turn and Integra's still form eased over again towards the vampire, but not quite all the way. Alucard felt foolish for feeling disappointed, but it was extremely rare to be this close to Integra without being yelled at. He smirked and debated whether or not to use his powers. Of course, he didn't think long; with his powerful mind, he reached out and gently pulled Integra into him so that she was resting her head on his shoulder. Delighted, Alucard twirled a lock of golden hair between his fingers and used his abilities to keep Integra calm and a sleep. Awake, Integra would have shielded any mental invasion easily, using the skills she's honed over the years. Asleep, however, Alucard knew Integra was susceptible.

Suddenly, the taxi slowed and took a sharp turn. Caught off guard, both Alucard and Integra were forced forward slightly and, when the taxi returned to a straight path and accelerated, Integra fell back into Alucard's lap, facing the front seat. This last incident was completely unexpected and the great Alucard was, for a second or two, taken aback. He just stared, wide-eyed, down at the young woman in his lap. Her head was warm from the sun and it felt rather pleasant on his cold body. He thought about how he had often imagined a scenario very similar to this in his perverse, boredom-induced fantasies. Perhaps when Integra was younger and more malleable, he could have seduced her and persuaded her into performing certain immoral acts, but she was less appealing then; her womanly curves had not developed. Now, she was 16 but looked more like 18 or 19, and she so easily saw through his false congeniality to his wicked schemes of corruption. Just thinking about her and having her this close to him, her soft cheek in his lap, was enough to send him over the edge. He could feel himself becoming aroused and he had long since lost his gentle grip on her slumbering mind; he knew that if he didn't do something, Integra was sure to feel something and wake up. He thought about his home land in the winter time. He thought about how it would feel to be back there now, walking in the courtyard at this time of year. Cold. Very, very cold.

Suddenly, Integra began to stir. It didn't take her long to figure out that something was wrong; the position she was in was putting a strain on her back. She opened her eyes. She was disoriented at first, but then she realized that she was staring at the front seat. Only, she wasn't sitting up and looking at it. Immediately, she felt embarrassed and scolded herself for going to sleep. She guessed that, in her sleep, she had fallen over to lie in the middle of the back seat. I must have been quite the amusement, she thought, imagining how Alucard must have laughed as he watched her slump across the seat.

That was when the seat beneath her moved. Not much. Just a little bit, but it was enough. She immediately realized that it wasn't the seat's leather her cheek was pressed against. It was something also hard, but soft at the same time. As she stared ahead, she recognized the dark forms in front of her eyes: pants, legs, knees. The blood immediately rushed to her cheeks as she launched herself up and out of Alucard's lap. She had to stop herself before she smacked her head against the window.

Alucard had recovered his calm expression as soon as it was apparent that Integra was going to wake up. Now, he just sat there, staring into her blushing face, and donning that self-satisfied smirk of his. Had she noticed his excitement? A quick flick of her blue eyes downward to his lap and a deeper blush answered his question.

"Sleep well, Master?"

Integra grew furious just hearing his arrogant articulation. Discomfited and trapped in a small space with nothing silver and no kind of firearm, Integra could only stare daggers at her servant. A million things were flying in her head, but all she could do was grumble and utter curse words.

"Master, I assure you it was just an accide–" he tried to say.

"An accident, Alucard? Then why the hell are you sitting in the middle?" the young blonde screamed, completely oblivious to the dark and scared brown eyes peering at the two through the rearview mirror from the driver's seat.

"I thought I would give you my shoulder to lean on so that you would sleep more comfortably." It was the truth, honestly. He hadn't meant it to turn out the way it had. Of course, he'd be lying if he said he didn't enjoy it.

"Right. Of course, because you are such a gentleman," Integra countered, boldly. She turned around with a huff and crossed her arms, staring out the window. Quietly, and letting it drip with sarcasm, she added, "I hope you enjoyed it,"

That low, smooth voice floated up from the other side of the taxi as the car pulled up to the curb outside of a ritzy hotel. Slowly, he said, "I did."