I don't own anything. (My new idiot-proof disclaimer.)

Lycanthrope

-Chapter Two: Sire

Shinji was running. Darkened buildings whipped past with incredible speed as he loped gracefully down the street. Ahead of him his prey screamed. "Oh God! Somebody help me!" The cry urged Shinji to end the chase. He ran faster and pounced. The man fell under Shinji's massive weight and screamed louder. Shinji delivered a single bit to his prey's spinal cord and the man fell silent. A loud toll rang out and Shinji turned to see a massive clock tower rising from the city. 'Big Ben?' Shinji wondered as the clock continued to toll midnight. He turned back to his prey and convulsed as he saw the jagged wound on his neck and blood starting to spread across the rough ground. 'No,' Shinji thought. He tried to scream, but all that came out was a long victorious howl.

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"Interesting."

"What is it ma'am?" Ritsuko glanced at Marvin for a moment and quickly turned her eyes back to her machinery. On one of the screens Shinji's brain wave patterns were getting even more erratic than before.

"It seems that he's having nightmares," Ritsuko explained.

"I don't need machinery to tell me that," Marvin commented. Ritsuko glanced at the twitching Third Child. "Respectfully," Marvin added quickly before Ritsuko could add a stinging rebuttal. "Is it possible to estimate how long the Third Child will be unconscious?"

"No its not," Ritsuko snapped.

"Sorry ma'am." Marvin turned slightly and stared out of the hospital room's sole window. Ritsuko sighed and rubbed her temples. 'Way to go,' she thought sarcastically. 'Piss off your only company.' She stood up and straightened her skirt.

"I'm going to go see if the blood tests are in," she said.

"I think I'll stay here," Marvin said. Ritsuko tried to hide a laugh. The poor man had been stuck watching over Shinji for the past forty-eight hours straight, yet he had managed to keep a dry sense of humor.

"Call me if anything happens," she said as she opened the door.

"Yes ma'am,"

(:::::::::::::ii::::::::::::::)

Marvin looked around the small room and yawned. He rubbed his face tiredly. 'I just know those people at NERV have forgotten that I'm here,' he thought in annoyance. He glanced up at the bed and stared. In the forty-eight hours since the Third Child had slipped into unconsciousness he had changed. His hair seemed longer and shaggier and had changed from dark brown to raven black. "That just can't be natural," Marvin commented to himself. 'Of course it's not like golden eyes and fangs are any more natural for a human.' Marvin glanced out of the window again. Outside the sun was shining and it looked like a beautiful day. Suddenly loud flat tone filled the room and Marvin glanced back at the bed. The once comatose Third Child wasn't there. "What the hell?" he wondered as he reached under his jacket for his Beretta. A pair of cold hands wrapped around his neck and Marvin gasped as something sharp was pressed to his jugular.

"Where am I?" a low, unsteady growl demanded.

"Tokyo-3 hospital," Marvin said. "Calm down Ikari."

"Who are you?" the young man demanded.

"I'm Sergeant Marvin Lee," Marvin said. "I'm a Section-2 agent."

"What happened?" Shinji demanded.

"You were attacked by a large animal," Marvin said. "You mind letting go?" The Third Child let go and Marvin turned, expecting to see him holding a knife or scalpel of some sort, but instead he saw that the young man's finger nails were at least four times their normal length. Even as he watched they slowly receded into his fingers. The Third Child stumbled away and put his back against the wall. Marvin glanced at his eyes and noticed that they had changed again. Instead of being either blue or gold they were now blue with golden flecks. "Just grab a seat and I'll call Doctor Akagi."

"I'll stand," the boy said. Marvin paused and took in the Third Child's posture. He looked like a cornered animal. Marvin slowly backed away and pulled out his phone. He punched in a number and waited.

"Lee?"

"Yes ma'am," Marvin said. "The Third Child. . ."

"The technicians were killed," Ritsuko interrupted.

"Uh. . .okay," Marvin replied, "now Doctor, about the Third Child ma'am. . ."

"They were found partially consumed," Ritsuko interrupted again. "It looks like it was done by the same animal that attacked Shinji."

"Doctor!" Marvin snapped, using his old parade ground bark.

"Yes?" the woman asked meekly.

"The Third Child is awake," Marvin said.

"Well why didn't you say so?" Ritsuko demanded before the phone went dead.

"You've got to be kidding me," Marvin said. He flipped the phone shut and shoved it in his pocket. "God damn woman." Marvin collapsed into his chair and glanced at the Third Child. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," the young boy said gruffly. 'At least he's calmed down.'

(:::::::::::::ii::::::::::::::)

Ritsuko shoved the door open and stepped into Shinji's hospital room. Marvin was sitting in one of the chairs next to the bed with his eyes closed. "Lee?" The man didn't answer. "Lee!"

"What?" he demanded, jerking sharply and blinking rapidly. "I was just resting my eyes."

"You can go now," Ritsuko said. "Your replacement showed up."

"Thank you." Marvin stood up and stepped towards the door. He paused when he was next to the replacement agent and tapped the man's shoulder. "Tag."

"I'm it," the man said. Marvin chuckled and walked out. 'Weirdos,' Ritsuko thought. She turned back to Shinji and bit back a gasp.

"Shinji?"

"Yes?" the young man asked, scratching the rough hair on his chin absently. In forty-eight hours his appearance had changed. She had noticed before, but now that he was awake it was far more obvious. His hair had turned black, he was growing a beard, and something had changed in his eyes. 'There's something else,' Ritsuko thought.

"How are you feeling?" she asked after a moment.

"Pretty good," Shinji said.

"Did Sergeant Lee tell you what happened?" Ritsuko asked. Shinji nodded and stared out of the window. "How's your shoulder?"

"It's burning," Shinji said flatly. "When can I leave?"

"As soon as the hospital doctor says you can," Ritsuko said. "Are you in a hurry?"

"Yes."

"Do you have somewhere to go?" Ritsuko asked.

"I fail to see how that is your business!" Shinji snapped suddenly. He stood up and threw the door open. "I'm going to go find something to eat." Ritsuko watched in shock as the door slammed shut.

"There's definitely something different about him."

(:::::::::::::ii::::::::::::::)

Misato looked around the hospital cafeteria and frowned. 'Ritsuko said that he would be here,' she thought tiredly. She hadn't gotten much sleep since Shinji had been attacked. Misato's eyes were drawn to the lone person eating in the cafeteria. He was leaning back in his seat and there were several Styrofoam trays on the table in front of him. "Shinji?" she called as she walked up to him. The man glanced up and brushed his black hair out of his eyes.

"Hi Misato." Misato grabbed her charge and hugged him tightly. The young man managed to free himself and stacked his empty trays.

"How are you feeling?" Misato asked.

"I was attacked by an animal that outweighed me by at a few hundred kilograms," Shinji said dryly, "how the hell do you think I feel?" His reply caught Misato completely off guard and she stared at him for a minute. "What?"

"Was that a joke?"

"I guess so," Shinji said as he threw his trays in to the garbage can near the table.

"Well your appetite has improved," Misato said. "How much did you eat?"

"Not enough," Shinji said with a frown. "Those assholes in the kitchen would only give me five trays." Misato stared at him again. 'Assholes?' That did not sound like her Shinji. "What?" Shinji demanded.

"Nothing!" Shinji took a deep breath and sat down.

"Sorry," he said finally. "I'm not feeling all that great and I'm starting to snap at people a little bit."

"It's alright," Misato said. Oddly enough, hearing Shinji apologized made her relax a little.

"There's Ritsuko," Shinji said suddenly. Misato turned and watched as her old friend walked through the door and over to the table. "Well?"

"The doctor wants to conduct a few more tests," Ritsuko said. "And they need some blood to replace the sample that was lost."

"Lost?" Misato asked.

"The hospital's lab was broken into by some kind of animal," Ritsuko explained. "The two lab workers were killed and the Shinji's blood was lost or destroyed."

"What kind of animal?" Misato asked.

"The same kind that attacked me," Shinji said. "It was the same one as a matter of fact, wasn't it?"

"It was," Ritsuko said. "A coroner matched up the bite wounds on the technicians to the one on you. I supposed Marvin told you that."

"No," Shinji said, shaking his head. "I just know."

(:::::::::::::ii::::::::::::::)

Misato watched as Shinji stepped out of the hospital and took a deep breath of the air. "You're staring again," he growled without looking at her.

"I was just thinking about the whole wheelchair incident," Misato said with a giggle. Apparently it was hospital policy that all patients had to leave in a wheelchair. Shinji had not wanted to leave in a wheelchair. That simple fact had almost led to World War Three before the nurses had decided that letting Shinji walk out would have been easier. "It's just weird seeing you assert yourself," Misato added.

"Whatever," Shinji said. "I'm hungry."

"You just ate," Misato said. Shinji shrugged and rubbed his stomach.

"I'm going to go get something to eat," he said finally.

"Do you have money?" Misato asked.

"I have the NERV credit card," Shinji said as he patted his pocket.

"Alright," Misato said with a nod. "Once you're done I'm sure Ritsuko will want you for some tests at NERV."

"My cell phone's on if something happens," Shinji called as he walked away.

(:::::::::::::ii::::::::::::::)

Shinji looked around the streets of Tokyo-3 and sighed. It had taken all of his willpower not to just walk out of the hospital. He hated that place. "You're following to close," Shinji said as he turned and stared at the black suited man.

"My mistake," the man said as he ducked down an alleyway.

"Definitely not the guy from before," Shinji said. That man had been a true professional and someone Shinji could respect. 'I think he said his name was Lee,' Shinji thought as he turned and began walking again. He knew a great little restaurant where he could get all the food he wanted. "What was that?" Shinji looked around the streets and tried to identify the odd sensation that had washed over him. It was twelve in the afternoon and the streets were almost empty. 'Well this is pretty much a company town,' Shinji thought. He spotted a lone man in a black trench coat and a large black fedora walking towards him. There was something familiar about the man. As the man drew he looked up and Shinji saw his eyes widen. "You!" Shinji grabbed the man by his throat and slammed him into the wall. "What did you do to me?"

"Let go," the man gasped, his fingernails raking Shinji's arm and biting deep into the flesh. It hurt, but that just pissed Shinji off more.

"What did you do to me?" Shinji demanded, slamming the man into the wall with enough force to cause plaster to rain down on them. The man pulled back his hand and shoved his fingers into Shinji's stomach. Pain raced through him and he dropped the man. He slumped to the ground and Shinji fell to his knees. He looked at the ground and saw his blood. He pressed his hand tight to his stomach and groaned in pain.

"First rule to interrogation," the man rasped. "Don't make it impossible for the prisoner to speak."

"I'll remember that,' Shinji growled. He glanced up and noticed the Section-2 agent running towards him. "Stay the fuck back!" The man stopped and stared at them. Finally he shrugged and backed away.

"I must say," the man said as he climbed to his feet. "I am surprised to see you here." Shinji grabbed a windowsill and used it to pull himself to his feet.

"What did you do to me?" Shinji repeated.

"Why don't we discuss this over lunch?" the man suggested as he gestured to the building behind Shinji. He turned and noticed a large sign proclaiming the building to be the Shiro's Diner.

"Fine," Shinji said flatly. "I was planning on eating anyway."

"Have you stopped bleeding yet?" the man asked. Shinji glanced at his stomach and noticed that the bleeding was tampering off.

"Close enough."

(:::::::::::::ii::::::::::::::)

"So who are you?" Shinji asked. The man glanced up from his menu and chuckled.

"How rude of me," he said. "My name is Bob."

"Bob," Shinji repeated.

"Robert the Vicious," the man corrected. "I like Bob better."

"They both sound ridiculous," Shinji said, his lips curling in a snarl. "Now you have some questions to answer and I suggest you tell the truth. You won't like the consequences of lying."

"I supposed I do have some questions to answer," Bob said. "Tell me Shinji, do you know what a lycanthrope is?"

"It's werewolf," Shinji said. "And how do you know my name?"

"I'll get to that," Bob said. "Now this will sound strange. . ."

"You're a werewolf?" Shinji asked.

"Yes," Bob said.

"Fair enough," Shinji said with a shrug. "That would make me a werewolf then."

"A beta lycan," Bob said. "A werewolf, or lycan, who is turned by a bite is called a beta."

"If I killed you," Shinji began. "Wouldn't I be human again?"

"Uh. . ." Bob began. "No of course not. I'm just another beta. You would have to track down the alpha." Shinji was almost insulted by the man's pathetic attempt at a lie.

"Now how do you know my name?" he asked.

"It is a lycan's greatest ability," Bob said. "Second only to our ability to regenerate physical tissue at an outrageous rate. We are able to absorb memories through blood. It allows us to have experience with something we have never experienced before. Tell me, have you been having odd dreams?"

"Those were memories?" Shinji asked. He suddenly felt less hungry.

"My memories," Bob said. "You took my memories and I took yours. That's half of the reason I was surprised to see you."

"Explain," Shinji ordered.

"How old do you think I am?" Bob asked. Shinji's eyes narrowed. He hated have a question answered with a question.

"Late twenties or early thirties," he said finally.

"I am well over nine hundred years old," Bob said. "In the past forty eight you have experienced nine hundred years of hunting and killing. Lycans sired by a century old lycan very rarely keep their sanity. For all intents and purposes you should be locked up in a padded cell right now."

"Well I'm not," Shinji said. "Why am I acting like this?"

"Lycans by their nature are aggressive," Bob explained. "Your instincts are starting to assert themselves. My advice is to avoid all strong emotions. You may find yourself rutting or killing before you know what's happening."

"I'm not going to kill a human being," Shinji said.

"Most lycans say that in the beginning," Bob said with a sad smile. "But hunting, killing, and feeding are inevitable."

"I won't do it," Shinji said flatly.

"You will," Bob said. "Right now I can see it. You are hungry no matter how much you eat and thirsty no matter how much you drink. That is because your body doesn't hunger or thirst for food or drink. It wants prey."

"It doesn't matter,' Shinji said as he climbed to his feet. "I will never kill a human."

"There is only one way to avoid it," Bob said. He reached under his coat and drew a small black pistol. "This is loaded with silver. One bullet to the head and there will be no more pain or suffering." Shinji took the pistol with trepidation. "There is no reason to choose now," Bob said, "keep it."

"What about transformations?"

"Those can come for two reasons," Bob said. Shinji sat back down and tucked the pistol into his belt. "Those are extreme emotion and a full moon. Less extreme emotions cause some changes as well. These partial transformations are more common and can include changes in the eyes and teeth. You want some advice?"

"Sure," Shinji said.

"My first piece of advice is control your emotions. If you live long enough then you will leave them behind you, but for now you are still extremely dangerous," Bob said. Shinji waited and watched as Bob picked up his menu.

"Well?"

"Well what?" Bob asked.

"What's the second piece of advice?" Shinji exploded, slamming his hands onto the table with enough force to crack the wood.

"Oh," Bob said. "Watch your nails."

"What?" Shinji asked blankly.

"Your nails," Bob repeated, tapping his fingernails against the wood. He put some pressure on his fingers and his nails sank easily into the table. Shinji touched his stomach and nodded.

"I'll do that."

"Track me down if you have any other questions," Bob said. "I'm not too hard to find." Shinji nodded and stood.

"I think I lost my appetite," he said in explanation.

"It's all right," Bob seemed to think of something. "Just so you know," he added, "I never meant for you to receive this curse. I was truly planning on killing you." Shinji nodded. Strangely enough that made him like the man a little more.

(:::::::::::::ii::::::::::::::)

"Why do you watch over him?" Bob turned and watched as a silver haired woman stepped from the shadows.

"What makes you think I'm watching over him Angel?" he asked.

"You killed those technicians," Angel said pointedly.

"I was hungry," Bob said in his defense.

"It's not like that actually helped," Angel added. "All they needed to do was draw more blood."

"See," Bob said pointedly. "That's proof that I'm not watching over him."

"Just tell me," Angel snarled as she sat down. Bob cowered from the younger lycan.

"Yes ma'am," he paused and pondered his reply. "He is the first lycan I have sired in over eight hundred years. I am his sire after all."

"What is your other reason?" Angel demanded.

"Before this," Bob began. "The oldest lycan to sire a successful lycan was one hundred a ten. That boy must be incredibly strong mentally. If he accepts his position then he will be one of the most powerful lycans ever."

"What do you mean 'if'" Angel asked. "Of course he will."

"I would not be so sure," Bob said. "He is quite determined never to hurt a human. He may very well end his own life."

"I see," Angel said. She rubbed her eyes tiredly. "It doesn't hurt that he reminds you of James, right?" Bob's shoulders drooped suddenly and he looked much older then he had.

"That does have something to do with it."

-End

(:::::::::::::ii::::::::::::::)

-Author's notes. This was just to explain lycanthropes. I'll move the story along more in the next chapter. Oh, and on a side note. I know Marvin and Bob are slightly odd names, but I kind of like those two. I think I'll keep them around. Here's another warning. From here on in Shinji is only going to get more and more OOC. If you don't like it then fuck off. (I didn't get much sleep last night so don't push me. I stayed up until about four a.m. watching the Cowboy Bebop and Vampire Hunter D movies.)