Disclaimer: By now, I'm sure you all know the drill... I own nothing. Believe me, if I did…I'd be a Jason Alexandwich right now. I do, however, own this plot and any characters I decide to throw in. Yayz!

AN: Okay, so, as I promised, here's the sequel for Night Stalkers. For those of you who don't read Someone Else's Life, I figure I may as well give you the same speech here that I gave in the first chapter of that. I'm trying something new…writing two stories at the same time. So, forgive me if updates are sporadic and take a while. With each chapter, I'm alternating between stories. That way, I can hopefully get through both and be able to write a third idea I have floating around. My creativity level is good lately, so I'm going with the flow while it lasts. Anyway, without further ado…chapter one of 'Dark Side of the Moon.'

Rory Callaghan stirred. It was time for her to wake up, she knew…but she wanted nothing more than to stay right where she was…in her nice, comfortable freezer, curled up next to the man she loved more than anything in the world. She smiled as she looked down at the engagement ring on her finger and up into the sleeping face of Dante Masters. He looked so peaceful while he was sleeping. His arms were wrapped protectively around her. Part of her wanted to move, to get up and grab a bite to eat, but she stayed where she was. She didn't want to wake him.

About half an hour passed, and she lay there simply staring at him. Then, he stirred, opening his eyes halfway and looking down into her face. He blinked sleepily, smiling as he did so.

"How long have you been watching me?"

"A while." Rory replied simply. She smiled and pressed a soft kiss to Dante's lips. She couldn't help but allow her mind to float back to that terrifying day a little over six months ago when she very nearly lost him. She wasn't entirely sure what she'd have done without him…She mentally shook herself, pulling her thoughts back to the present. That particular day had affected her way more than she'd ever care to admit. "It's time to get up."

"Do we have to?" He asked. Rory laughed.

"Unfortunately yes. We've got to go to Mick and Beth's for dinner, remember? We promised."

Dante sighed. "I suppose you're right. But I'd still rather stay here." He grinned mischievously.

Rory just smiled and pressed a long, tender kiss to his lips. "There'll be plenty of time for that later…after all, we've got eternity."

"Yeah…" Seth countered. "But I'm horny right now."

Rory sighed and chuckled to herself before becoming swept up in the urgent, passionate kiss that Dante sprung on her suddenly and without warning. She reciprocated with all of her pent-up emotions, pouring her heart and soul into the kiss as if it were their last. She had almost lost him once, and she was going to make damn sure that she never took what they had for granted ever again. For the rest of eternity, she was determined to live each moment as though it were their last, to kiss each kiss as though it were their last. After all…six months ago, it very nearly was.

"Well…" Rory said, once again shaking herself from her dark thoughts and forcing a smile. "I suppose we do still have some time to kill before we have to get ready…"

Dante chuckled and grinned at her, eyes sparkling with mischief.

"I'm sure Mick and Beth won't even miss us…"

MLMLMLML

Beth sat staring at the clock, wondering where the hell Josef, Dante and Rory were. They should have been there half an hour ago. She was getting anxious. She had to tell them. She was simply ecstatic.

Mick walked down the stairs and into the living room to find Beth pacing anxiously in front of the doorway. Mick smiled, walked up behind her, and wrapped his arms around her.

Beth jumped at Mick's touch before turning quickly to face him.

"That's not fair! You shouldn't be able to do that anymore!" She said, slightly annoyed.

"Well I wouldn't be able to if you paid more attention to what was going on around you." Mick countered with a grin. Beth opened her mouth to say something, but was stopped by Mick's abrupt kiss. Pulling away after a moment, he grinned widely at her. "Has anyone ever told you how sexy you are when you're pissed off?"

Beth couldn't help but laugh. "Several of the multitudes of men I dated before you have, now that I think about it." She met Mick's deep frown with a smirk. Truthfully, she'd only dated a few guys before she'd met Mick, but she enjoyed seeing the look on his face when she hinted otherwise. It was her greatest form of entertainment. And she just slightly enjoyed the fact that he was so jealous. It was her twisted indication of how much he really loved her.

"So…have you heard from Rory and Dante yet?" Mick asked, trying to change the subject. He didn't want to imagine the thought of Beth with anyone else. Even if whoever else it was came before him.

"No," Beth sighed, suddenly remembering why she was so impatient.

"They'll be here." Mick assured her with a small smile.

"I know," Beth said, a hint of a whine in her voice, "but I want them to just get here already!"

Mick chuckled. She reminded him now of the slightly spoiled little girl she used to be, the girl he'd spent all those years watching from a distance. The little girl that had grown up to become the love of his life. His fiancée, he reminded himself with a smile. He had finally proposed to her the night before. They were just waiting on Rory, Dante, and Josef to arrive so that they could share the wonderful news with everyone.

"Patience is a virtue, Beth-"

"Well it's not one of my virtues!" Beth cut in, her impatience made clear in her voice. Mick chuckled. Beth continued. "I just…I really want to let everyone know. It's just so…"

"Exciting." Mick finished for her. "I know. And I'm just as anxious to tell everyone as you are-"

"Could have fooled me." Beth muttered under her breath, knowing full well that Mick could hear it with his extremely sensitive hearing.

"-But I, unlike some people I could mention," He looked straight at Beth, "have learned patience in my nearly 88 years."

"Well excuse me for not having lived 88 years." Beth said.

"Well, you'll learn…even if it takes you all of eternity." Mick said with a smile. He pulled her into another kiss, a deeper, more passionate one this time.

They kissed passionately, heatedly. Mick allowed himself to be pushed by Beth into the nearest wall, before turning her and reversing their positions. They somehow managed all of this without breaking their kiss. Beth gave Mick a mischievous smile, as they finally broke apart to look into each other's face. Beth grinned as Mick vamped out, allowing the change to overtake her own features. She seductively ran her fangs across Mick's neck, just deep enough to draw a small amount of blood. She lapped up the blood with her tongue. Mick shivered, and then plunged his own fangs into Beth's neck. She let out a small moan, thoroughly enjoying the moment. Until…

Beth and Mick both jumped as three loud, consecutive knocks came on the door. Mick sighed, pulling away from Beth and allowing his features to return to normal. He glanced over at the wall, where a screen was mounted beside the door.

"Well, they're here." Mick said, smiling at Beth. Mick watched the screen as Josef walked up behind Rory and Dante.

Beth smiled playfully, reaching up and turning Mick's face back toward hers. Her eyes were filled with mischief.

"They can wait…see how they like it for a change."

Mick smiled, vamping out and, pinning Beth to the wall once more, plunging his fangs into her neck…

MLMLMLML

Rory, Dante, and Josef had been standing outside Mick and Beth's apartment for nearly ten minutes. They were becoming impatient.

"So…what do you think the news is? Beth said it was urgent." Rory asked. Josef snorted.

"I would have thought that would be obvious." He smirked, thoroughly enjoying the annoyed look on Rory's face.

"Then tell me, oh omnipotent one, do you know something we don't?"

"Well, not for sure…but I have a pretty good idea." Josef answered, his smug smile becoming even more pronounced. He could tell he was really getting on her nerves, and quite frankly he was having fun doing so.

Dante just stood back and watched, amused almost to the point of laughter. He had learned by now not to interrupt Rory and Josef's bantering, as doing so often resulted in Dante himself suddenly becoming the bad guy and being cut down to size. Then, to top it all off, he would have to sleep in the guest freezer because Rory would be pissed off at him.

Rory looked at Josef, waiting for him to continue. When he didn't, she just scoffed and muttered 'asshole' under her breath. Then, she turned and knocked impatiently again.

Finally, after about twenty minutes, Josef, Rory, and Dante finally hear movement behind the door. The three stood up from their sitting positions on the floor and stood in front of the door expectantly.

After dressing quickly, Beth ran to get the door, Mick close behind her. Beth opened the door and smiled brightly, Mick assuming a position just behind her and smiling just as brightly.

The three standing outside the loft stood and quietly examined the couple standing within. Rory immediately noticed several things. One; Beth's shirt was inside out. One of the tags sewn to the inside stuck out clearly. Two; Mick and Beth both looked distinctly dishevelled. Their hair was in a disarray and they were breathing heavily. Three; their body heat seemed to be elevated. Even by vampire standards.

Rory immediately put two and two together.

"Ugh…you mean that…while we were standing out here waiting…you were doing-"

"Hey! It's not like you and Dante don't do the same thing!" Beth countered.

"Yeah, but at least I have the common decency not to do it while guests are standing outside my apartment." Rory said.

"Well maybe if you had actually bothered to show up on time we wouldn't have had to resort to creative methods to pass the time while we were waiting for your sorry asses." Beth said with a smirk. Rory was silent for a moment.

"Well, all I can say is…thank god you had the good sense to soundproof your room." Rory finally said, a smirk crossing her face. Beth laughed and grabbed her in a hug. Rory hugged her back tightly.

"Sorry to ruin the moment, but is there any possible way that we could move this inside? I, for one, would like to get the show on the road." Josef piped up. Mick and Dante laughed in agreement. The two women hugging in the doorway let go of each other and shot the men dirty looks. Then, everyone walked into the apartment and sat down in various seats in the living room. Mick and Beth sat in two chairs side-by-side across from the sofa. Rory, Dante, and Josef all sat down on the sofa, Dante wrapping his arm around Rory's shoulders.

Mick and Beth smiled at their three closest friends. Mick took Beth's hand and both he and Beth took a breath in anticipation.

"Well?" Rory asked expectantly.

Mick looked at Beth. "Should I tell them or should you?"

Beth looked back at Mick. "I think you should tell them."

"Are you sure? Maybe you should. After all, you're the one that wanted to tell them so badly-"

"I don't care who does it, but someone better tell me what the hell's going on while we're still in this century." Rory said, somewhat annoyed by the whole puppy-love display.

Mick and Beth looked back at each other from where they'd been looking at Rory and said in unison, "We're engaged."

"Finally!" Dante said.

"Took you long enough." Piped up Rory.

Josef just smiled. "I so called that."

Mick looked at the three vampires sitting across from him. He looked slightly disappointed. Apparently, he'd expected a different reaction. Beth just rolled her eyes. Their reactions were so typical.

Rory noticed Mick's look and smiled. "Well of course we're ecstatic for you!" She said, jumping up and hugging Mick before hugging Beth again. Mick's face immediately brightened as Rory said this, and as Dante and Josef jumped to their feet and offered their congratulations.

"Thank you…all of you." Mick smiled around at the others, hugging Beth tightly to his side. Josef smiled mischievously as he pulled out a very expensive-looking bottle of high-end liquor.

"So…who wants alcohol? You can't very well have a celebration without booze and blood."

Everyone laughed as Josef went and gathered a bunch of glasses and some fresh blood out of a bottle he'd brought and poured everyone an equal mixture of liquor and blood. They all raised their glasses in a toast before drinking them down.

Josef looked around him at the happy couples. The cheery atmosphere filled with passion and love mirrored almost exactly that day a few weeks ago when Dante had proposed to Rory. Josef was happy for all of them, truly he was, but there was a part of him, buried deeply away from the prying eyes of his family standing around him that…and he hated to say it…envied them. He thought sadly of Sarah, of how he should know this joy with her. If only he hadn't tried to turn her…

Shaking himself mentally, Josef was brought back to the present, only to become painfully aware of the fact that everyone was looking at him with slightly worried expressions.

"Josef…are you okay?" Beth asked softly. She had been the first to notice that he'd become lost in his thoughts. She recognized the look of intense sadness on his face, the look she'd first seen that day when she and Mick had travelled to New York and discovered Josef's secret past…the look he only wore when he was thinking about Sarah.

"What? Of course, why wouldn't I be?" He asked, pasting on his too-wide fake grin. He downed the rest of the contents of his glass. "Refill, anyone?" He asked, reaching for the bottles. Everyone just stared at him but said nothing. No matter what he did, they wouldn't be convinced that he was fine. He'd let them see; the damage was done.

MLMLMLML

After sitting down to dinner (everyone having a pitcher of fresh blood) and talking late into the night, Rory, Dante, and Josef finally left at about two a.m. Josef shook hands with Dante and gave Rory a hug before climbing into his waiting limousine.

"Bye, Josef." Rory called. Dante gave a good-natured wave. Josef smiled and waved back before rolling up the tinted window on his limousine as it pulled away.

"Well," Dante said to Rory, wrapping an arm around her as they walked to their car. "The night is still young. What should we do?"

Rory smiled mischievously, stopping and pulling him into a deep, passionate kiss. After breaking apart, Dante smirked at her.

"I've got a few ideas…" Rory said, still grinning mischievously. She and Dante shared a laugh before climbing into their car and driving away.

The man that had been standing in front of the building across the street smoking a cigarette took one last puff and tossed it on the ground, stomping it out with his foot before walking over to his parked car. He ran a large hand through his dark, nearly jet-black hair before pulling out a notebook and a pen. He scribbled down some information, and then glanced back up at the window to Mick St. John's apartment before sliding the key into the ignition and pulling out of the spot he'd been parked in all night. He couldn't afford to stay there much longer. If he did, he'd run the risk of being seen. He stole a quick glance at his notebook.

"Two men identified as Josef Konstantin and Dante Masters and one woman, Aurora Callaghan, seen exiting St. John's building together. Konstantin known associate of St John. Masters and Callaghan most likely also associated with St. John."

TBC…

And…(dramatic music plays) Dun dun dun! Yeah…more of my evil cliffies. I'm glad I've finally finished this chapter. I was having some writer's block, trying to decide how best to set this up, which is why it took so long. That and the fact that school is really hectic lately. So yeah…here it is. I don't know if it turned out exactly to my standards, so I must shamelessly beg for reviews…I need to know what you think. The next chapter will be posted after I've finished writing and posting chapter 2 of Someone Else's Life. Well, enjoy! And please review. They're inspirational!

Love always, Cat.