Over the next year, the Gravewatchers fought several more times. Each fight only brought them closer together as they helped 'forced' Alucard to get along with them and do things other than training and eating.
He did enjoy his time with them, however, as he found them refreshingly honest compared to what he'd been living with before all of this. He grew to enjoy their company, even if he talked the least after Michael.
The war also ramped up as the Gravewatchers found themselves fighting more and more, as Diamond Kingdom mages relentlessly tried to push past them into the Clover Kingdom. When that failed, they often resorted to burning villages, and they were usually pursued afterward.
There had been a few close calls when more experienced Diamond Mages took to the field, but for the most part, the Gravewatchers were the instrument of choice for the base commander as he sent them into battle after battle.
They didn't receive any reward, however. Carter was promoted steadily until he reached 5th Class Grand Magic Knight, while Cat wasn't far behind, as she finally reached 3rd Class Senior Knight.
Emanuel and Jorge were both tied at 1st Class Intermediate Knight since Emanuel spent more time fighting than killing, and Jorge spent most of his time boosting allies and erecting defenses. Michael was way ahead, however, because of how lethal he was, earning him the rank of 5th Class Senior Magic Knight.
Alucard was steadily catching up, however, as he finally hit 3rd Class Intermediate Magic Knight when he found an unexpected visitor. "Mimosa?! What are you doing here?" Today they'd returned from patrol to find Mimosa waiting in their bunks, as she hopped over to him.
"Alucard Novachrono!" She used his full name as the teasing died on Emanuel and Cat's lips. "Well, it was nice knowing you, kid!" Carter was the first to leave as Alucard felt nervous under Mimosa's unyielding gaze.
"How can I help you, dear?" He felt oddly nervous as she got right in his face. "Do you have any IDEA how worried I've been? It's been almost FOUR MONTHS! AND NOT ONE LETTER!"
Outside the tent, Carter and the others were trying their best not to laugh as Michael gave them a play-by-play of what was happening inside.
"I'm sorry. I've been busy with the war." It sounded hollow, even to him as her frown deepened. "Even Mero is able to send me letters, and she's in the middle of the Volcanic Grand Magic Zone!" She got even closer, tilting her head back to glare into his eyes as he finally relented.
"I apologize, Mimosa." He said as she threw her arms around him, trying her best to crush him with her chest as she hugged him. "I was worried, don't ever do that again." He returned the hug as the other finally returned.
"Nice to meet you, we've heard so much about you!" Cat said straight off the bat as Mimosa took one look at her and gave Alucard a look. "No, only you and Mero, or I swear I will level this country!" She gave him a look that said, 'Sure.' Before putting on her public smile once again.
She then became the social butterfly known as Mimosa Vermillion as she introduced herself to everyone. "It's so nice to finally meet you all. Thank you for taking care of Alucard for me! He's never sent me any letter, so I have no idea who you are." She gave him a pointed look as Emanuel cackled.
"Well, my name is Catherine! This is our Captain, his name is Carter, and I'm second in command. Then you have Emanuel, who's a distant relative to the Vermillions, then Michael and Jorge," She pointed, and they all waved at Mimosa, "We're the Gravewatchers squad!"
After Mimosa got done talking to them, she dragged Alucard away for a tour of the land as they waved bye, 'Traitors!' He glared at them as Cat burst out laughing. "They're really nice, I'm surprised they have tried to chase you away."
"What's that supposed to mean?!" He demanded as Mimosa giggled, "You're always so grumpy, even when it's just us. You never smile or anything."
"I make jokes sometimes!" He tried to defend himself as she shot him down, "You try to make jokes, but they are sometimes funny."
He frowned as she kept pulling him by the arm out of the base, as Carter went to tell the Base Commander where he was being taken. Once they left the base, they took to the sky as Alucard finally looked at Mimosa to see she'd grown in the last year.
The first noticeable change was her hair and figure. Her hair used to rest on her shoulders; now it stretched past her shoulders as she scooted closer to him on the broom she'd forced him onto.
Her body had also filled out much more as he felt her press against him, "What's wrong?" He looked at her and realized he'd missed her. "I've been away for a while, and you've changed so much. You're almost as tall as me."
She snorted, "Of course I am. You think Mero went easy on me after you joined the Magic Knights? She's been dragging me all over the place for months now to train, usually to the Volcano. She did take me to the Black Bulls base and forced me to train Vanessa; her control over String Magic was very interesting to see."
He nodded as he also noticed she now had her grimoire. "So, how's the grimoire? I trust you have more than just healing spells?" He asked, and she nodded, bringing out her grimoire as they paged through it together.
"Obviously, I have two healing spells. One is more like a stationary cradle, the other is a robe that lets me be more mobile, so I don't get hit as often. I also have a sensory spell that has been useful in the Capitol, as hundreds of stalls have been set up for this year's Magic Knight Exam.
I also have two attack spells, one fires a beam from a plant, the other releases spores, obstructs the view, and probably chokes whoever breathes them in."
At the mention of the Magic Knight Exam, he finally noticed she was wearing a Golden Dawn uniform, as she grinned, seeing his face. "How do I look? Surprised?" She asked as he controlled his face once more.
"You look beautiful as always, Mimosa. I'm glad to have you in the squad." She blushed lightly at his praise. "So I'm guessing William sent you here to get me." He finally put together how she got here as she nodded.
"Yes, Captain Vangeance sent me to collect you and the rest of the Gravewatchers squad. Another group is being sent to relieve your positions here." She said as he poked her side, "So you deliberately came to mess with me?!"
She laughed and shoved him away, "Oh, please, you needed someone to come remind you I exist. Life isn't just killing enemies and training, you know, the people matter as well."
He felt bad as her voice got quieter, "I'm sorry for ignoring you, Mimosa." He said as she looked up, "You have nothing to apologize for other than not sending me letters! You can't control where you're assigned to anyway."
He still felt bad, which she noticed as she grabbed his hand. "If you feel so bad, then when we get back, you can take me shopping!" He snorted, "You wish!" They started arguing about whether shopping was quality couple time, never letting go of each other's hands as the sun finally set beyond the horizon.
"I can't believe we're going back to base already, lady friend must have pulled some strings to get you back, huh?" Emanuel laughed over the wind as Alucard rolled his eyes. "Don't let her get too handsy, we're still here after all!" Cat shouted from ahead of them as Mimosa laughed.
She yelped as he dove sharply, clinging tighter to his back as he rejoined the formation. "Don't do that again!" She yelled as she tried to strangle him, and Jorge chuckled. "Do they ever get tired of flirting?"
The normally quiet flight back home felt much more alive with Mimosa with them. She either spent her time talking to Alucard, talking to Cat, or trying to get Michael to speak.
"Just give up, girl, he's not talking unless someone tries to jump us." Cat finally said as they landed at the Golden Dawn's base. "I can always keep trying!" Mimosa said, determined as Captain Vangeance, and Vice-Captain Langris met them in the great hall.
"Welcome back, I'm glad to see you all still among the living," Vengeance said warmly as Alucard felt his skin prickle. 'Someone is watching me, but who?' He considered it might be the 'friend' inside Vangeance, until a familiar voice called from above.
"THOUGHT YOU COULD GET AWAY, BRAT?!" Mereoleona screamed as she landed at the entrance of the hall. Alucard took off without a word as she raced after, cursing at him as Mimosa burst out laughing.
"Should we save him? I'm pretty sure that was the Flaming Lioness!" Carter said as Cat grinned, "Nah, let him suffer." "Wow, little dude's got two Vermillions, crazy!" Emanuel whistled as Michael smirked, hearing Alucard yell at Mereoleona to leave him alone.
"Anyway," Vengeance retook control, "You are free to rest at your leisure. The next War Merit ceremony is in a few weeks, so enjoy your time until then."
"Thank you, Captain Vangeance." The remaining Gravewatchers bowed as they left the Great Hall, as Mimosa chased after Mereoleona and ALucard.
"Did we have to let her in?" Langris asked as the floor shook beneath them. "It was that, or she would tear through the defensive shield. I chose the cheaper option." William laughed as they too left.
"I can't believe you wouldn't even send Mimosa any letters. It's like you forgot about us entirely!" Mero smacked the back of Alucard's head as Mimosa grinned. "Yeah, hit him again, Mero!" She cheered as she obliged.
He sighed as the pair continued to take swings at him, before healing him again. "Are you done?" He finally asked as Mero nodded, and she let him drop. He dusted himself off before punching her in the gut, running off towards his room as she cursed and chased after him.
Reaching his room, he assumed he would be safe, only for Mero to break down his door and hurl Mimosa at him. "What the!" He barely caught her as Mero reattached the door, "Now no one'll hear you scream!" She grinned as he snorted.
"You wouldn't hurt me, not while I'm holding poor Mimosa, would you?" He held her up higher as Mero laughed. "You've forgotten who I am, Mimosa's on MY SIDE!"
Mimosa then kicked his shin before dropping as Mero tackled him to the ground. "GET HIM MIMOSA!" She shouted as Mimosa brought out her grimoire, Alucard thrashed violently under Mero as he wondered what evil spell these witches had concocted.
"Plant Healing Magic: Dream Healing Flower Basket."
He stopped fighting as a flower basket formed around them, as Mimosa entered and sat beside his head. "I noticed you have a few wounds, so I wanted to help. I knew you wouldn't let me, so I brought Mero over to hold you down."
He wanted to argue, but knew she was right since he was more than capable of healing himself. He stayed silent, however, and let his body relax as Mero stopped trying to strangle him.
"See, it's not so bad to enjoy a little relaxation," Mero said as she stretched out next to him, and the trio enjoyed the feeling of healing magic on their skin. "It feels like bubbles are landing on my skin and popping." He said finally, as Mimosa smiled.
"I'm glad you like it." She said as she hesitantly reached out and swept a bit of hair from his face. He stiffened under her touch, but didn't pull away, so she continued stroking his hair as Mero raised a brow.
"Didn't think you had it in you. Good job on calming down." Alucard glanced at her before pointedly scooting closer to Mimosa, who froze as his head touched her thighs.
"Oh great, the virgins don't know what to do, how classic!" She teased as Mimosa frowned, reached over, and twisted her nipple. "ARGH, WHAT THE FUCK MIMOSA?!" She yelped and slapped her hand away as she cradled her pinched boob.
"Stop being weird, we're only kids." She said plainly as she huffed, settling back down as Alucard snickered at her pain. She then reached over and jabbed a finger into his flank as his body twisted away at the shock.
"Serve's your right!" She snorted as Mimosa smiled at their childish ways.
The next two weeks were full of quiet moments and loud moments. Mimosa was just itching to go shopping, and she gladly spent all her time dragging Mereoleona and Alucard around the nearby towns as she went through all the local shops.
After trying to escape several times, Alucard gave up trying to get away when Catherine found them, as she and Mereoleona hit it off, and Carter was dragged along as well.
"So I'm guessing she got jealous and asked you out?" He'd asked as Carter nodded with a sigh. "It's not all bad, we share one room back at the Base, but the others keep teasing me over it."
The two guys bonded over their shared misery as Mimosa, Mereoleona, and Catherine spent almost a week shopping.
The quiet moments were more than worth it, however, as they usually ended up piled up on his bed, enjoying each other's company as Mimosa and Mero talked, while Alucard usually slept on either a lap or the floor when they kept fighting over him.
He also has a chance to speak with Captain Vangeance, who gave him his next assignment.
"Ah, Alucard! Come take a seat." He closed the door behind him as William finished sorting his paperwork.
"So, very soon, the yearly Magic Knight Selection Exam will be held. I'm taking you and Siren with me." William spoke plainly as Alucard realized that the timeline had finally caught up to his meta-knowledge.
"Can I bring Mimosa with me? It would be a good way for her to experience what it's like for normal people trying out." He said as William considered for a moment, and agreed. "Very well, just be sure you're both ready when it's time to depart."
Alucard was then dismissed as he went back to spending time with his Fiance, and the day of the Magic Knight Exam finally arrived. 'Time to see how much Asta and Yuno have grown.'
(A/N-Wednesday may not have a chapter, not paying for wifi on a plane bruh. Maybe later at night, we'll see.)