FicWad

"Gerard, I need to talk to you," Frank said quietly. Mikey was asleep upstairs, but Frank decided he couldn't be too careful. Gerard looked at him with infinite patience.

"What is it?"

"I know you're planning to follow Mikey tonight," he said, seating himself next to Gerard on the sofa. "You didn't honestly think I wouldn't find out, did you?"

"Wouldn't dream of it," Gerard said flatly, rolling his eyes. His expression became serious, meeting Frank's eyes with his own. Frank saw a flicker of light pass through the hazel-colored discs as Gerard searched his mind. He had become used to it after so many years.

"...You knew," he murmured with a deceptively calm tone. He suddenly smirked. "You didn't honestly think I wouldn't find out, did you?" Frank let one corner of mouth curl into a smirk. He remembered why they were friends.

"So is that a yes? Because I'll end up coming anyway if you say no," said Frank. Gerard nodded, face becoming serious once again.

"I know you want human blood, Frank," he said with a note of sadness. Frank knew it was supposed to make him feel guilty, but it wasn't working. "I'm not going to stop you, but I will say this. Do not do anything to hurt my brother, or you will regret it." Frank nodded in understanding, then cracked a smile.

"Wouldn't dream of it."
-
Bob and Ray crept towards the cave in their wolf forms, remaining within the cover of the forest and letting their sharp eyesight do the rest of the work.

'Do you smell anything?' thought Ray as Bob raised his nose to the air, searching for any sign of their enemies. He sneezed once, but shook his head.

'Nothing so far. Maybe they won't come,' Bob thought in response.

'I wouldn't be so sure,' thought Ray, ears perking up toward a sound. Bob heard it as well. 'One of them is running.'

'Shall we catch up?' thought Bob, baring his teeth. Ray answered by taking off after the sound. Bob quickly followed.

Mikey ran towards the meadow as fast as he could, certain that his hunger had vanished completely. He had to be sure he wasn't starving when he was around the girl; her blood still seemed delicious to him. More so than usual human blood. He had had it before, and it was definitely more tasteful than animal blood. But after the War ended and all the humans vanished, their diets were forced to change.

A scent drifted into his nose, one that made his fangs grow out in anticipation. Not of a hunt, but of a fight. It tasted like sour dirt to him. The sound of footsteps hit his ears a moment later, growing closer and louder within seconds. He tried to run even faster if possible, but he dared not burn out all his energy. He couldn't be hungry again by the time he reached his destination...if he did.

He broke through the line of trees at the forest's edge. Before he could take another stride, however, something tackled him to the ground with surprising force. He decided it was a good thing he didn't need to breathe, or his lungs would have been crushed.

"What's the hurry, bloodsucker?" asked a nearby voice with a smirk clearly audible. Mikey tried to stand, but there was a heavy weight pinning him to the ground. Something swiped at the skin on his neck, but only received a few shortened claws for its trouble.

"Get this mutt off of me and maybe I won't have to kill you," he growled in return. He heard dark laughter.

"No need for the insults. We're all friends here," said Ray, reverting to his more human-like form.

"Friends? That's hilarious. Remind me to laugh after you're dead." Ray just laughed again and knelt to the ground so he was eye-level with Mikey.

"Get away from my brother!" shouted Gerard, running into the wolf with full force. Bob was so stunned from the impact that he didn't fight back right away. Mikey stood up and immediately disappeared, leaving the fight behind before anyone noticed his absence. He had to warn her.

Alicia rolled the stone out of its place, but just when she had enough room to walk though, something slammed into her and knocked her back inside the cave. She found it difficult to breathe for several seconds.

Mikey stood and pushed the stone back into its place, hoping none of the scent had escaped. He realized the girl was still lying on the ground and helped her stand.

"I'm sorry," he said quickly, hoping she would recognize his voice and not scream. "But there are wolves out there, and I don't want them to find you." He swallowed as venom began to fill his mouth. "I'm afraid you won't be able to go outside until they're gone."

"How will I know when that is?" Alicia asked with a note of sadness.

"I'll be able to hear it, so I can tell you when it's safe." He smiled, though she couldn't see it in the darkness. "I never found out what your name is."

"Alicia. You?"

"Michael, but call me Mikey." Alicia hugged him, and he returned it.

"I'm glad you're here," she said softly.

'Me too,' thought Mikey, smiling. He tried to speak, but a wave of warm air swept over him, rife with human scents. He couldn't tell how many there were. He immediately stopped breathing before his hunter's senses could take over. 'I will have to learn to control this,' he thought grimly, 'before someone gets hurt.'

Alicia took his hand and started walking, leading him down the familiar hallways as her eyes adjusted to the light. Mikey could already see, but let her lead anyway. He saw another girl up ahead, and she looked at him with shocked eyes.

"Alicia, who is this?"

"Mikey," she said casually. "He's my friend." Jamia grabbed Alicia's arm and pulled her away from Mikey. He refused to open his mouth in protest in case he started breathing again.

"Get away from her, you monster," she growled. Alicia broke away from her and ran to Mikey, who placed an arm around her protectively.

"I'm not going to hurt her," he finally said, trying to take breaths as shallow as possible. "She's my friend."

"I know you're one of them. How did you even get in here?" Jamia asked angrily.

"He was protecting me!" Alicia shot back. "There were wolves out there and he didn't want me to get hurt."

"Speaking of which," Mikey broke in, "you need to hide. I think my brother and his friend were following me, and-"

"You led them right to us," Jamia said in a low voice. Other people were beginning to gather around them, all wondering who the new arrival was.

"I had no idea they were there!" he shot back. "And if they hadn't been there I would be dead right now!"

"I wouldn't be complaining," Jamia muttered, not knowing he could hear it. He decided not to respond.

"You really should hide," he said instead, taking Alicia's hand. She nodded and briskly walked down the hallway to her room, closely followed by Jamia. "Stay here," Mikey instructed them, disappearing instantly. Alicia blinked a few times to make sure she hadn't imagined it.

"Well, we might as well take his advice," she said, closing the door and going to her closet. She shoved some of her stuff aside and sat on the floor, hugging her knees to her chest.

"I can't stay here. They're all in trouble," Jamia said quickly, running for the door.

"No!" Alicia shouted. "What if they get you, too?" she asked fearfully. Jamia paused for several seconds. "They know they need to hide. Just...please...don't go out there."

"...Okay," she said uncertainly, joining Alicia and closing the closet door. They sat there in silence, just waiting. Something had to happen soon.